Growing Up
by JasonMorganLvr
Summary: This starts the night of the warehouse fire, when Jason pulled Sonny out of the fire. Liz and Lucky have returned to Kelly's and are sleeping. Features Liz and Jason
1. Nightmares

She heard the sirens again, in her dreams. Screaming at her, warning her. She sat up with a bolt, taking a moment to catch her breath and realize where she was. "I'm at Kelly's. Lucky's right here. We're ok. " she told herself. But nothing was really ok. There had been a fire. "Jason!" She whispered as she remembered him pulling Sonny out of the burning coffee warehouse. Liz checked to make sure Lucky was still asleep, and quietly crept out of bed. Going back to sleep was no longer possible. She had to know if Jason was ok, at the very least. 

Running to her studio, Elizabeth prayed that Jason would be there, but when she burst through the door, it was empty. Sitting on the couch to catch her breath, she realized how foolish she had been. "Why would he come back? I asked him not to," she said to herself. Since she was here, and sleep wasn't an option, she shrugged off her coat and set up her paints. 

She chewed on her lip as she stared at the blank canvas before her. Not knowing quite what she wanted to paint, she turned on some music, in the hopes that it might drown out her thoughts of Jason. Remembering she had a still life due for her class in a couple days, she threw some colorful pillows on the sofa and got to work. Once she began, Jason slipped further and futher from her mind, until the only thing she was aware of was the sofa and the music.   


~~~~~~~ 

Leaning against the door, he watched her work. The furrowing eyebrows, chewing on her bottom lip, humming to herself. She was so into her work that she didn't notice as he quietly entered her studio. But that was how he wanted it. He liked watching her paint. Oblivious to everything around her except her art. She was so beautifulwhen she painted.... when she did anything! 

Lost in his own thoughts about Elizabeth, he didn't realize she was done until she spoke his name. 

"Jason." 

"Hi," he replied, breaking out of his reverie. 

She turned down her music. "I didn't think you were coming back. Now that everyone knows you're in town." 

"I hadn't planned on coming back, but I didn't have any place to stay. And I figured you wouldn't mind if I stayed one more night. Actually, I didn't expect you to be here." he stood up and reached for the door knob. "Do you want me to go?" 

Liz starts to clean up her paints and brushes. "No, no. You don't have to go, I'm just surprised to see you." She took a deep breath to try and calm her pounding heart. 

"You're sure? Because I can just rent.. " 

"NO. ahem, I mean no, that's ok. One more night won't hurt." _And I don't want you to go,_ she thought to herself. 

He nodded silently and went to sit on the sofa. He watched her intently as she finished cleaning up her brushes. She was just so beautiful to watch. He couldn't take his eyes off her. 

When she finished, she turned to face him, and blushed slightly when she realized he had been watching her. Her heart started beating faster, and there was a fluttering in her stomach. _What is this? What's happening?_ She thought. I_ should leave and go back to Lucky_. But she found herself walking towards the sofa... and Jason.... 


	2. Sleep

Taking a deep breath, Elizabeth sat down next to Jason. She could still smell the smoke from the fire on his leather jacket, and it reminded her of another fire she wanted to forget. She closed her eyes as the sirens blared in her head, flames rising high above her. A single tear slipped down her face as she relived that horrible night all over again. 

"Elizabeth? What's wrong?" Jason watched the tear as it slid down her face, making a path for other tears to follow. He knew what was wrong, but knew Liz and to say it herself. 

Elizabeth opened her eyes, and wiped away the lone tear. "I was just remembering the night of Lucky's fire. The sirens waking me up, the smoke pouring out of the building." She closed her eyes again to try to prevent the tears from escaping, but it was too painful to live through. 

Jason brought his hand up to her face in a vain effort to wipe away her tears. She placed her hand over his, to keep it there. The warmth of his touch spread throughout her body, comforting her, reminding her that she shouldn't be here, with him, like this. After a moment, she lifted her face from his hand to wipe the tears away herself. 

She laughed half heartedly. "I thought I had put this all behind me, the fire and Lucky's 'death'. I guess I haven't." 

"I won't say I understand what you're going though, but if it helps to talk about it..." 

"I woke up dreaming of the sirens. Did I tell you the sirens woke me up the night of Lucky's fire?" 

Jason nodded, "You dreamt them at first, but you woke up to find they were real." 

"Yeah, well I dreamt about them again tonight. They woke me up again. First time I've dreamt of them since...." she said as she rose to retrieve a tissue. "At first I didn't know where I was, but I realized Lucky was there, and everything was ok. But I couldn't go back to sleep, so I came here to paint." 

Jason smiled and nodded towards the still life, "I can see that. Did it help?" 

Elizabeth frowned. "Not really." 

"Because it's not what you really want to paint?" 

Elizabeth looked back at the painting, "Yeah, I guess. I'm not sure." Turning back to look at Jason she noticed there was still soot on his face. She reached up to wipe it away, but instead she punched him hard in the shoulder. "Why'd you do that?!!" 

Jason chuckled, "Do what?" 

"Run into the warehouse!! It could've collapsed on you!" 

He shrugged, "I dunno. I guess I saw that nobody else was going to save Sonny, so I went in" He took her hand in his, "Elizabeth, I'm ok. I didn't get hurt." 

She placed her other hand on his, "I know, but you COULD have gotten hurt, and that's what scared me." Tears started to fall again and she thought about it. 

Jason smiled as he pulled her to him. Resting her head on his chest, the scent of smoke gave way to the smell of leather and sweat. She took a deep breath, to fill her nose of his smell, and to try and calm her racing heart. She could hear the steady beat of his heart, and it soothed her. 

He kissed her on top of her head, gently coming it away from her face. "It's all right Elizabeth, I'm right here," he whispered. But she didn't hear him, she had fallen asleep. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He held her as she slept, so soft and warm. _Even when she sleeps she's beautiful, _he thought. As if she heard his thoughts, she shifted, bringing her arm to rest around him, like he was a teddy bear. He chuckled to himself as he settled in for what seemed to be a long night. 

As he rested his head on the back of the sofa, he thought back to when he came out of the fire. Carly rushing up to see Sonny. Jason had collapsed on the ground to try and catch his breath. When he finally looked up, there she was, with Lucky of course, but she was there. And the terror in her eyes was unmistakable. He had wanted to go to her, comfort her, but Lucky pulled her away. She looked back once, and the tears in her eyes drove a knife though his heart. He wished he could follow her, to see if she would be ok, but there was work to be done. Sadly, finding the mole had to take priority over Liz. So he had let her go with him. But that didn't stop him from wishing he had been there for her. 

After finding Rick with Sorel, he knew he had to go back to the studio, was drawn there by some irresistible force. He knew it was a slim chance that she would be there, but slim chances are better than none. So he had gone, and there she was, asleep next to him. He smiled to himself as he drifted off to sleep.   


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

She stirred slightly, reaching over to feel the bed, but all she felt was air. "Lucky?" she mumbled, "Lucky, where are you?" She opened her eyes and sat up with a start when she realized she wasn't at Kelly's. One name kept repeating itself in her mind: _Jason_. She looked to her right, but he wasn't there. Standing up to stretch she tried to remember the previous night's events. 

Elizabeth walked over to the window to look out on the river, and that's when it hit her. The fire. Seeing the ashy remains of the Corinthos-Morgan coffee warehouse brought everything into focus. "I remember..." She gasped. "Jason! he went in.. " She talked herself though it, the picture becoming clearer. "But he came out." She breathed a sigh of relief. "Now I remember. He went in to save Sonny, but he came out. He's ok." She came around the sofa, almost knocking over her painting. Liz picked it up and stared at it for a moment, then it dawned on her, what had happened after the fire. The nightmare, sleep escaping her. Jason. Jason! He was here! Wasn't he? She looked around, but there was no sign that he had been there. 

"I must have dreamed it," she said to herself. "Wouldn't be the first time." She set about putting away her paint and brushes when she saw it. On the table, next to the brushes she used the night before was a plastic cup half full with water, and a single white rosebud in it. She brought the bud to her nose to take in it's scent, and that's when she smelled him. His scent lingering over the studio like a haze. _He_ was _here_, she thought. _I didn't dream it_. 

Smiling to herself, she set the bud back in the make shift vase and went back to cleaning up her mess. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He had left when the sun came up. It hadn't been easy leaving her, but he didn't want to be there in case Lucky showed up looking for her. That would've been a disaster beyond compare. He didn't want to leave without letting her know he really had been there, so he risked a trip to Lila's rose garden and took a single bud that he could leave on her table. He smiled at the thought of watching her wake up, but knew it was too risky. Besides, Rick needed to be dealt with. There would be time to see Liz after that. 

So here he was, sitting on top of a building, watching Rick, Carlos, and Sorel, but wishing he were with Elizabeth instead. He sighed as he watch the action, but his mind kept going back to the night before. The way she smelled, like paint and cleaner. The way she felt against him, all warm and soft. He hadn't felt this way in a long time. Not like this. He couldn't wait to see her again. 

He called Sonny, to take care of the Three Stooges. Then he could see her. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Just as she was finishing up. _Jason_, she thought as her heart sped up. She walked over to the door with an expectant smile on her face. 

"Hi!" She chirped as she opened the door. There stood Lucky, with a worried look on his face. Before she had a chance to say another word, he had her in a tight hug, nearly preventing her from breathing. 

Liz's mind raced, trying to figure out what Lucky was doing there. 

"I was so worried about you!" He said as he released her from his grip. "How long have you been here?" He came into the studio and glanced towards the sofa, noticing the blanket spread out on it. "Did you sleep here?" 

Liz turned away from him to close the door, and collect her thoughts. _Did he see Jason leave?_ She thought to herself. 

She smiled nervously at him, "Yeah, I had a nightmare, sirens and all. And I couldn't fall back asleep. So I came her to finish an assignment -" she pointed at the portrait, "and when I was done, I just collapsed on the couch." She hoped she sounded believable. 

He took her hand to pull her down on the sofa with him. "Why didn't you wake me up? I would've come with you, so you wouldn't have to be alone." He hugged her again, "Are you ok?" 

"Yeah, I'm ok." Then she remembered the rosebud, "But, uh, I gotta get back to Kelly's, I'm probably late for my shift." 

He stood up to walk her out when he noticed the rosebud. "What's this?" he asked her. 

"It's from Em," she lied easily. "It's from her grandmother's rose garden. She thought it would brighten up the place a little bit." She had to look away from him so he wouldn't see the truth in her eyes. 

He watched her as she folded up the blanket, and then back to the bud. Not sure if it was the truth or not. _Who else could it be from?_ he thought to himself. Satisfied with her answer, he grabber her coat and bag and guided her out the door, glancing back once more to the lone bud....   



	3. Thoughts

With Sorel, Carlos, and Rick dealt with, Elizabeth was the only thing he could think about. He headed over to Kelly's, hoping that she was working, and that Lucky wasn't there. 

As he walked up to the door, he peeked inside. She was there all right, but so was Lucky, like he was standing guard over her at the counter. She looked up from the coffee and locked eyes with him. He smiled and waved, but left before Lucky could see him. The last thing he needed was Lucky getting upset. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

She knew he was there before she looked up. When she did, he was there, watching her with those clear blue eyes. She smiled at him, but turned away quickly so Lucky wouldn't get suspicious. 

Lucky had noticed her looking at the windows, so he turned to see who was coming in. When he didn't see anyone, he asked Elizabeth who she was smiling at. 

"Oh, Emily passed by. Probably on her way to see Zander at Alexis' place." She smiled at him, hoping he would believe that lie too. 

She felt horrible lying to him, but she knew what he would say if she told him about Jason staying at her studio. HE would have a meltdown. And she couldn't deal with that. Not right now. She knew how he felt about lies, and secrets, but that was better than telling him the truth... for now. 

Tammy came out from the kitchen. "Hey Liz, you can go. It's pretty slow today, and Gina wanted to come in early today." 

Elizabeth thanked Tammy as she took off her apron. Lucky pulled her into a kiss as she rounded the counter. She smiled at him as she pulled way. "Hey there," she said seductively. Lucky mumbled a hello as he kissed her again. Elizabeth laughed as she pulled away. "Not here," she whispered into his ear. 

Lucky grinned, taking her hand to lead her upstairs, but he was met with resistance. "What's up?" he asked her. 

"I have some sketches that I HAVE to get done. Can you take a rain check?" 

He thought about it for a second, "How about I come with you while you sketch, then we can go to the Grill for dinner?" He headed for the door. 

"Um, Lucky? How about you give me three hours? I promise, in three hours, I'll be back, and we can do.. whatever," she said as she winked at him. 

He looked at her skeptically, but relented. "I guess I could go see LuLu. Haven't seen her in awhile." He kissed her once more, then left the restaurant. 

Elizabeth ran up to her room to grab her pads and pencils. She breathed a sigh of relief as she closed the door behind her. _He knows_, she thought to herself. _He knows Jason was with me last night._ She threw her supplies into her bag and skipped down the steps two at a time. When she walked out of the diner, she tried to decide where to go. She decided against the studio - not much to draw there, and the docks might not be a good idea, with the fire and everything. "I'll go to the pond," she said to herself. "There's bound to be people skating that I could sketch." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He was sitting on the docks, looking at what used to be his warehouse. Well, half of it was his anyway. His mind kept going back to the night before, when he looked up to see Liz standing there, tears glistening in her eyes. He shook his head, trying to get her out of his mind. _What is wrong with me?_ he thought to himself. He shouldn't be thinking about her this way. She loved Lucky, and that was that. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sitting on the bench, watching the people skate by, Liz was struck by how happy everyone was. Smiling and laughing. Not a care in the world. She sighed as she opened one of her pads. She picked out a father and daughter to sketch and began working. The pencil just glided right over the paper, as if under it's own power. She barely glanced up to observe the skaters. If she had, she surely would have noticed her sketch looked nothing like the scene before her.... 


	4. Feelings

Elizabeth eased out of her daze as she put the final touches on her sketch. Looking up at the crowd she found the father - daughter pair she had singled out. She watched them for a moment, and looked back at her sketch to see how she did. She gasped when she saw what she had put on the paper.... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Lucky spotted Liz in the park as he made his was back to Kelly's. He smiled to himself, stopping to watch her sketch. She was so focused on her drawing that he decided to let her finish. Whistling a tune, he walked away, missing the look of shock on Elizabeth's face by seconds. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Jason," she whispered. She looked once more at the pad, not believing she had drawn Jason as she had seen him the night before at the warehouse. The look of helplessness in his eyes as he dropped to the ground. She felt tears come to her eyes as she remembered the way he looked at her, begging her for help, without saying a word. And how she had to turn away from him. She ran her fingers over the page, as if she were caressing Jason's face. Her heart broke just thinking about it. 

Looking at her watch, she realized she was supposed to meet Lucky for dinner pretty soon. Picking up her bag, she gingerly placed the sketch pad inside, and headed for Kelly's. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Lucky heard Liz enter her room, and decided to give her a few minutes before he went over there. Running his hand through his hair he smiled to himself. Not being able to wait once second longer, he went over and knocked on her door. When she didn't answer, he knocked again. She still didn't answer, so he decided to sneak in. As he entered, he heard the shower running, and Elizabeth singing, rather badly. He chuckled as he noticed her sketch pad lying on the bed. Curious as to what had her so engrossed earlier in the park, he opened it up. The first couple of pages where old sketches that he'd seen before. 

He decided to try one more page. He suddenly dropped the pad on the floor. Blinking, he looked at the pad again, making sure that he really saw Jason on the page. Using every ounce of energy he had to keep himself from tearing the page up, he closed the pad and placed it back where he found it. 

Two seconds later he heard the shower turn off. Not sure what the sketch meant, Lucky left. Writing a note to Elizabeth saying he needed to see someone, Lucky set off for the docks.... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth could've sworn she heard someone in her room. She quickly finished up her shower, and dried herself off as rapidly as possible. Wrapping the towel around her, she peeked out the bathroom door. When she didn't see anyone, she stepped outside fully. That's when she noticed Lucky's note. She frowned to herself. _I hope everything's ok_, she thought. When she turned around to get dressed, she noticed the pad lying on the bed. Holding her breath, she opened it to the picture of Jason, making sure it was still there. _Did he see it?_ she wondered. She looked uneasily at the door, not sure of anything anymore... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason was walking along the docks, on his way to see Emily at Kelly's, but thinking about Elizabeth, hoping he might bump into her too. So engrossed in his own thoughts, he didn't see Lucky lurking in the shadows, watching him, wondering... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Since Lucky had decided to cancel their date, Liz thought it would be a better use of her time if she went to the studio. At least she could be by herself and think. Maybe get a few emotions out on the canvas. She didn't notice Jason nearing Kelly's, and was surprised when he grabbed her arm as he ran to catch up to her. 

Startled, she immediately pulled away from her aggressor, but when she realized who it was, her whole face lit up. "Jason! Hi." 

He smiled back at her as he took a moment to catch his breath. "Hey. Where you headed?" 

"My studio." 

"Mind if I walk with you?" 

"Of course not," she said. 

When they reached her studio, Jason immediately made himself at home on the sofa. "I'm sorry I had to leave this morning. I thought it would be best in case Lucky came by looking for you." 

Elizabeth waved off his apology as she dropped her pads on the sofa next to Jason. "That's ok. Actually, he did show up, so it was probably best." Turning to her table, she remember the rosebud. "And thanks for the rosebud. It's beautiful." 

_Not as beautiful as you,_ he thought, but he bit his tongue. Knowing she was in love with Lucky was killing him, but he couldn't stand to be away from her. He hated himself for it, but as long as he kept his feeling for her to himself, there wasn't any problems. 

He noticed her sketch pads there next to him, "Mind if I look at these?" He didn't wait for an answer. Opening up the first sketch pad, he sucked his breath in. Elizabeth spun around, wondering what was wrong. She knew before she saw him looking at the pad what he had seen. She tried to say something, anything to distract him, but he was focused firmly on his face on the page. 

"Jason..." she whispered. He didn't hear her. Studying every line, every curve on the paper, he finally looked at her with a shocked expression. 

Elizabeth found herself spilling everything, "Jason, last night, when you looked at me that way, you broke my heart. I wanted to come to you, but I couldn't. I'm so sorry." The tears started streaming down her face. She walked over to the window to look at the gutted remains of the warehouse. 

Jason couldn't tear his eyes away from the picture as the thoughts whirled through his head. _What does this mean?_ He wondered, _could she feel the same way?_


	5. Escape

Finally able to tear his eyes away from the sketch pad, Jason rose from the sofa to join Elizabeth at the window. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he tried to comfort her, but there were too many thoughts running through his head. Forcing away the ideas, he turned her around and pulled her into a hug. He wasn't sure why she was crying, but he knew he needed to be here, now, and not thinking about what might be happening between them. 

They stood like that, Jason holding Liz, neither ready to let go yet, when Jason's cell phone rang. "I have to take this," he whispered to Elizabeth as he silently cursed the caller on the other end. 

"Yeah?" he said, a bit too harsh. When he realized it was Sonny, he turned away from Elizabeth, not want to disturb her. Jason sighed, "Yeah, ok, I'll be right there." 

He turned back to Elizabeth to find her staring out the window again. "I'm sorry, but I have to go." He placed his hand on her shoulder again. She nodded silently, but didn't turn around, not wanting Jason to see the pain in her eyes. 

"I'm sorry," he whispered again as he left her. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth watched him from her window until she couldn't see him anymore. When she finally turned around, she noticed he had left the sketch pad open to her drawing of him. Not wanting to see it anymore, she threw the pad across the room, then ran to pick it up so nothing would get damaged. 

She sat there, staring into space. Not sure what was going on inside of her. Making her feel this way... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason reached Sonny's penthouse in record time. He could feel her watching him as he walked through the docks. He didn't dare turn around to look at her though, for if he had, he would've run right back to her. 

Johnny opened the door to announce Jason's arrival. Sonny and Benny were just finishing up a conversation. 

"Bye Benny," Sonny said as he motioned Jason over to the desk. 

Jason nodded to Benny as he passed, wondering what was going on now. 

Sonny looked at Jason with daggers in his eyes. "There's something going down. You need to get to the island, immediately. Carlos' men are threatening retaliation. Take Francis with you. If you have any problems, call me." 

Jason sighed, knowing he had to go, though it was the last thing he wanted to do. He wouldn't even have time to say good bye to Liz. He hoped she would understand, she **had** to understand... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

After an hour, Liz decided to go back to Kelly's, to see Lucky. Maybe that would calm the storm inside of her. 

When she reached Kelly's, she spotted Lucky at the counter, drinking a coke. 

"Hey," she said as she sat down next to him. 

Not looking at her, he mumbled something in reply. 

"What's wrong?" She held her breath, unsure of what was coming. 

Lucky sighed, "Em and Zander have disappeared again. Nobody knows where they are." 

Since Zander was still out on bail, she knew this was bad news. 

He paused for a moment, trying to think of a better way to say it. "I'm going after them," he said, still not looking at her. 

Elizabeth stopped and looked at him. When he finally looked up at her, she saw hate in his eyes. Knowing how much he loathed Zander, she mistook it for hatred towards him. Knowing it was no use to try and talk him out of it, she nodded slightly, "I understand." 

"I have to Elizabeth. If Sorel's men find out they're missing...." He left off, not wanting to think of the possibilities. 

"It's ok Lucky. I understand." And she did. It would give her time away from him, to think about things. Try to get her emotions in order. 

His eyes finally softened as he realized how harsh he was being, "I'm sorry Liz. I know you're still remembering the fire and all, but Emily needs me. I'll be careful, I promise." He pulled her to him, hugging her tightly. He kissed her gently, and wiped away the tears that had once again started to fall. He hated leaving her, but Emily needed his help, or a good smack upside the head at least. She looked up at him and smiled, trying to make the both of them feel better. Kissing her nose, Lucky left. 

As she watched him leave, she had a feeling that nothing would ever be the same again...... 


	6. Questions

Since Lucky's departure, Elizabeth took some time to herself to sort out the emotional roller coaster she couldn't seem to stop. She walked to the park, thinking about Lucky. How they had found each other. What they meant to each other. She had never loved anyone like she loved Lucky. But since the kidnapping, Lucky just wasn't Lucky anymore. She could understand that he wouldn't be the same, but it was still hard to admit, even to herself. 

Sitting down on a bench, she thought about the year Lucky was gone. Sadness settled on her like a blanket as she relived the night of the fire, collapsing in Sonny's arms when Taggert brought her the subway token Lucky wore around his neck. She couldn't remember much after that. For the next couple of weeks, she had gone through the motions, not feeling anything. Wanting to lose herself in something other than grief, she went to Jake's. But when she tried to forget, it all came crashing back. Thank God Jason had been there to save her from herself. Who knows what might've happened if he hadn't shown up. 

She sighed at the thought of Jason, her sounding board. Just what had happened between them? They were friends, of course. But nobody understood. Then again, nobody except Sonny and Bobbie knew that Jason had been shot. Nikolas just assumed the worst. Of course she hadn't tried to explain the situation to him, but so what? What business was it of his if Jason stayed in her studio? So what if he thought they were sleeping together?! She wasn't about to let anyone tell her what to do, especially after Lucky's death. She was going to live her life **her** way. And that was that 

But then Jason left. And Nikolas came to her with proof that Lucky might still be alive. She promised she wouldn't let herself believe, but God help her, she believed. 

But he wasn't the same. Telling her she belong with Nikolas. Didn't he know how much that hurt her? He began spending more time with Emily. She knew they were best friends, but there was something about they was their conversation stopped whenever she appeared. When Lucky finally told her about the brainwashing, it all made sense. But even after seeing Dr. Collins about deprogramming him, Lucky wasn't the same. 

And she wasn't the same either. Her whole life had been turned upside down. And nothing could ever change that. She had grown, emotionally, during the year that Lucky was gone. And continued to grow as he pushed her away. They had once thought they would be together forever. Now she wasn't sure, of anything, and especially of Lucky. 

This Lucky was not the Lucky she fell in love with. But she knew that she would never get that Lucky back, ever. The question was, did she, **could** she, love this Lucky just as much? 

That question echoed throughout her mind as she returned to Kelly's and crawled into bed. 


	7. Endings

Liz awoke the next morning with a heavy heart. Yesterday had taken it's toll on her. The confusion, sadness, and uncertainty were ever present in her mind. "Why is it so hard for me to admit that Lucky and I are not what we once were?" she said to the room. She shocked herself by saying it out loud, but once it had been said, she felt a liberation of sorts. She said it again, but with more feeling, "Lucky and I are not what we once were." She smiled to herself, knowing what had to be done, and feeling better than she had in weeks. Getting dressed, she headed for the studio, hoping that along the way, she would run into Jason. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

She opened the door, half expecting to see Jason sitting there waiting for her. _Silly,_ she thought. J_ust because YOU may have feelings for him doesn't mean he has feeling for you!_ Throwing her coat on the couch, she turned on the radio to prep herself for a serious painting session. Grabbing her brush and paints, she noticed a folded piece of paper leaning against the cup containing the rose bud. She smiled inwardly, knowing that Jason had been here. Unfolding the paper, the smile quickly vanished: 

_Liz,_   
_I know this is sudden, but I need to take care of some things for Sonny. You understand why I can't go into detail. I'm sorry I couldn't say good bye in person, but I barely had time to leave this note. I couldn't leave without saying good bye. I will be back, I just don't know when. Please understand.___

_Jason_

Knowing the business Jason was in, Elizabeth accepted his explanation. She was sad he was gone, but he said he's be back. And Jason never breaks his word. 

Remembering she needed to be at Kelly's in an hour for her shift, Liz decided against painting, and returned to the diner. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Emily!" Elizabeth ran around the counter to greet her friend, silently thanking God that she wasn't hurt. "What did you think you were doing?!?" Elizabeth asked. 

"We just wanted to get away before the trial started," Emily explained. "With all the pressure Sonny and Alexis have been putting on Zander, I thought it would be good to get away from that." 

"You could've told us you were leaving!!" Elizabeth couldn't believe what had happened to her friend. Ever since she'd been kidnapped, Emily wasn't the same. _ Just like Lucky_, Liz thought 

"I knew we'd be back in a few days. I figured you would be ok without us for awhile." Emily knew how much Zander was disliked, but they'd only been away for a few days!! 

Zander walked into the restaurant, with Lucky behind him. Liz cleared her throat, telling Tammy she was going on her break. 

Walking up to Lucky she hugged him, "We need to talk." Lucky looked at her quizzically as she grabbed her coat and walked out the door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Once on the docks, Lucky pulled Liz in for a kiss, but she turned her head at the last minute, his kiss ending up on her cheek. Knowing this was not a good sign, Lucky sat down on the bench and steeled himself for what was coming. 

Liz sighed as she looked out on the river. This would take every ounce of courage she had. And even then she wasn't sure if she could do it. She turned back to Lucky, the look on his face breaking her heart. 

Before she could get a word out, Lucky interrupted her, "It's Jason isn't it?" He couldn't hold it in any longer. He had seen the sketch, and the rosebud was **not** from Emily, he had known before he asked her. 

Liz looked down so he wouldn't see the truth in her eyes. She knew he had known, wasn't sure how, but he knew. "This doesn't have anything to do with Jason. This has everything to do with us." She sighed as she sat down next to him. "Lucky, I realized something yesterday. Something I never thought would happen, but it did. And I don't know if I can change it." He looked at her with pain in his eyes. "Lucky," she whispered, "I'm not in love with you anymore." 

Lucky stopped breathing. To him it felt like his heart stopped beating. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. 

Elizabeth continued, "I don't know when, or how it happened. No, I do know when. When you were gone. Lucky, I had let you go, finally faced up to the fact that you weren't coming back. But then, you were here again! I couldn't believe it. I couldn't admit it. Especially when you kept telling me you didn't love me." 

Lucky looked at her, tears streaming down his face. "But you didn't give up on me. You made me see Dr. Collins. We fixed it, WE did Liz, you and me." 

Liz nodded as she looked towards the water. "I know Lucky. During that time, I clung to what we had, the perfect love, a permanent lock. But Lucky, I don't feel that permanent lock anymore. What we were then is not who we are now. I can't hold onto the dreams that we shared, Lucky, because that's just what they are, dreams." 

Lucky balked at her words. "We can still have those dreams Elizabeth, please Elizabeth. We can make new dreams." 

Elizabeth shook her head, "No Lucky, I'm not the same anymore. I want different things for myself. I do love you Lucky, but I'm not in love with you anymore. I'm sorry." She blinked away the tears that threatened to fall. 

"Elizabeth-" he started, but she interrupted him. 

"No Lucky, don't tell me you're still in love with me. You're in love with what I was. But I'm not that person anymore. And you're not the person I fell in love with either. We're different, I've finally admitted it to myself. And in time you'll see it too. I know you will." She took a deep breath, "I hate hurting you like this, but staying with you, and pretending that our love is indestructible would only be hurting you more." 

Lucky thought for a moment, then asked his original question again, "It's Jason, isn't it?" 

This has nothing to do with Jason!" she yelled. I make my own decisions. I should have let you go in the beginning, when you were pushing me away. But, Lucky, loving you was all I ever knew. I couldn't let it go so easily." 

Lucky scoffed, "Well, you sure are letting it go pretty easily now." 

"Lucky, I can't pretend any more. And I can't stand to hurt you anymore." Taking his face in her hands, she kissed him gently on the lips. "Good bye Lucky," she whispered before turning to walk away. 

Lucky jumped up to stop her, "Elizabeth! I won't stop loving you. Never." 

Elizabeth smiled sadly, "Yes you will."   



	8. News

Sonny sighed as he put the phone down. _This is not good,_ he thought. Walking over to the window, he thought about the conversation that just took place. Knowing what he had to do, he picked up the phone again. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth returned to Kelly's with a look of exhaustion on her face. Seeing Emily at the counter, Liz knew she didn't need, or want to rehash what just happened, but Emily would know, just by the look on her face. "We broke up," Elizabeth said simply. 

Emily nodded, not really surprised. She had known long ago that they wouldn't be together forever anymore. "I'm sorry," was all she said. 

Elizabeth smiled half heartedly, "So am I." She picked up the phone after the second ring, "Kelly's" 

Emily watched as confusion stole over Elizabeth's face, "Who is it?" she whispered. 

Liz placed the phone back on the hook. "Sonny." She motioned for Emily to stay as she went back to tell Tammy. 

"Tammy? Sonny just called. He, um, needs me there right away." 

Knowing that you don't make Sonny wait, Tammy simply nodded. "That's fine, we're pretty slow anyway." 

Emily watched as Elizabeth emerged from the back, "Is everything ok?" 

"I'm not sure," Liz replied. "I'll let you know." 

Emily nodded, knowing that Liz probably wouldn't be able to tell her anything. 

Tammy and Emily watched as Liz slowly made her way out of Kelly's, neither knowing that Liz would never be the same again. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The butterflies in Elizabeth's stomach would not rest. She smiled nervously at Johnny as he opened the door to announce her. "Elizabeth Webber." 

"Well, well. If it isn't Little Miss Easy Bake Oven. What do you want now?" Carly sneered as Liz walked into the penthouse. 

Before Elizabeth could answer, Sonny emerged from the kitchen. "Carly that's enough. I asked Elizabeth here. Go take Michael to the park." He look at her with no feeling in his eyes whatsoever. 

Rolling her eyes in protest, Carly spun on her heel to collect Michael. "I won't be gone long," she told Elizabeth as she exited the penthouse. 

Sonny motioned for Elizabeth to sit down on the sofa. Throwing the papers he had been reading on the desk, he sat opposite of Liz on the ottoman. 

She nervously tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, "Sonny, what am I doing here?" 

Sonny cleared his throat as he tried to think of a gentle way to explain the situation to her. "You know Jason's been gone for a few days now?" She nodded, a frightened look in her eye. 

Inwardly he groaned, she wasn't making this easy. Unable to look her in the eye he told her the best way he knew how. "He's been hurt." He flinched as she gasped. 

"But he's ok, right?" 

Sonny shook his head. "I'm not sure. He's been slipping in and out of consciousness." 

She closed her eyes to prevent the tears from falling. Sonny handed her a box of tissues as he prepared himself for the next part. Clearing his throat, he continued. "Elizabeth, he's been calling for you in his bouts of semi consciousness. I need you to go to him. He needs you." Watching her trying to collect herself was breaking his heart. Sonny wasn't sure what was going on between Jason and Elizabeth, but he was positive it was more than just friendship. He moved to sit next to her, taking her in his arms as she cried. "Shhh," he whispered in her ear as he gently rocked her. "He's going to be ok, but I think it would really help him to know you're there." Pulling away from her, he looked her in the eye. "Can you do this? For me? For him?" 

Elizabeth nodded as she wiped away the last of the tears. "Of course I can. Just let me pack a few things." As she got up from the couch she turned back to him, "How long will I be gone?" 

Sonny shrugged as he opened the door. "As long as he needs." Elizabeth nodded, knowing he would say that. "If you need anything, just call. I'll wire you some money. Thank you Elizabeth." He turned to Johnny. Bring her to Kelly's to get her things, then to the plane." He stood in the hall as the two waited for the elevator to arrive. Placing a reassuring hand on Liz's shoulder, he tried to comfort her. "He will pull through Liz. You have to believe that." Liz nodded as she and Johnny entered the elevator. 

Back inside the penthouse, Sonny said a silent prayer. 


	9. Beginnings

Elizabeth slept during the plane trip to Sonny's island. Dreams of Jason came and went, some of them good, some of them not so good. As the plane touched down, she shivered. Not knowing where she was was almost as scary as knowing Jason was in trouble. 

One of Sonny's men met her at the gate, "Miss Webber?" 

Elizabeth smiled, "Hi Francis. I guess we'll be spending some more time together, huh?" She chuckled, remember the couple of weeks she spent under Francis' watch. 

"You won't see much of me, I promise." 

Elizabeth nodded, "Nope, I probably won't." 

On the way to Sonny's place Elizabeth played over the events from the day before. Breaking up with Lucky was the hardest thing she had ever done. But bringing Jason back could prove to be harder. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_He could barely distinguish her outline as she stood on the beach, the wind ruffling her hair, waves crashing on the shore. As if she knew he was there, she turned to him and smiled. He waved as he started towards her. She waved back, but started to walk backwards, into the ocean. She laughed as her feet entered the water. "Wait up!" he yelled, but she didn't hear him. The water was up to her knees now as the skies started to darken. He tried to run to her, to stop her, but his legs just wouldn't cooperate. The water was up to her neck now, she was still laughing though, as the water churned around her. "Elizabeth!" he cried, trying to reach her. A wave came up from behind her, forcing Liz underneath the water. "Elizabeth!" he screamed, but she couldn't hear him, she never surfaced._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

She jerked awake at the sound of her name. Looking down at Jason, sweat pouring down his face, she didn't want to know what he was seeing. She took the bowl and washcloth from the table next to his bed. Filling it with cool water, she returned to his side, gently cooling him with the cloth. "I'm right here," she whispered in his ear, "I'm not going anywhere. Wake up Jason. I'm right here." He calmed down after a moment, and miraculously, opened his eyes. He tried to focus his eyes on her, "Liz?" 

Elizabeth nodded, but he didn't see it, for he had slipped back into oblivion. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

For three days she stayed by his side. Worrying, hoping, praying that he would make it out. He had opened his eyes a few times, but only for a second. She wasn't sure if he knew for certain she was there or not, but she kept talking to him anyway. She knew he was dreaming about her, he called out to her many times. The pain in his voice was unmistakable. 

Placing her hand on his, she sat back in the chair, quickly falling asleep. She dreamed about them, on the beach together. They were sitting in front of a fire, but the fire kept growing as it turned into the warehouse fire. She awoke when his hand stirred underneath hers. 

"Jason?" she whispered as she sat up. She took his hand in hers, "Jason, wake up. It's me, Elizabeth. C'mon Jason, wake up." 

"Elizabeth?" he whispered. 

"Yes! Yes, I'm here! Wake up, open your eyes." 

He blinked a few times, "Could you turn down the lights please?" 

Liz chuckled as she reached for the switch. "Let me call the nurse, let her know you're up." She got up, but was stopped when he grabbed her wrist. "Wait. Let me have a minute." Jason groaned as he rubbed his face. "What happened? How long have I been here?" He looked at Elizabeth, "How long have _you_ been here?" 

"You were shot, twice. In the shoulder, and the abdomen. Luckily no organs were hit, but you developed an infection that caused you to slip in and out of consciousness. You'll have to ask Francis exactly what happened, I don't know anything about it. That was about six days ago. I've been here for four." 

He started to ask how she knew, but she stopped him. "Let me get the nurse, then we can talk, ok?" 

He nodded as she left. Trying to remember what happened was like trying to get blood from a stone. The nurse walked in, checking his vitals, but otherwise staying silent. 

"Thank you," Liz said as the nurse left. 

She sat back down as Jason adjusted himself into a sitting position. "Sonny called me. He said you were calling out for me, and asked me to come here, to try and bring you out of this. And I said yes." 

Jason looked stunned. He hadn't realized he was actually talking out loud. But of course, how could he know? "You left everything just to take care of me?" He didn't want to jump to conclusions, but he was jumping anyway. 

"Of course I did. Jason, you were shot. I may have been able to turn my back on you after the fire, but not now. You needed me, so I came." She shrugged as if it was no big deal. 

"Yeah, but-" 

"No buts Jason. I'm here. That's that." She knew what he was trying to get at, but she wasn't ready to get into it just yet. Besides, he still look exhausted. She stood up, "You need to get some sleep. You look dreadful." He smiled as she leaned over to give him a kiss on the cheek. She turned to leave, but he grabbed her wrist to stop her. "You'll be here when I wake up?" 

Elizabeth nodded. 

Impulsively, he pulled her to him, putting his arm around her to bring her in for a kiss. She let herself kiss him back for a moment, but pulled away before it got too heated. "Jason," she whispered as she placed her hand over her lips. 

He looked into her eyes, so she would see the truth, finally. "I've been wanting to do that for a very long time." He could see the tears well up in her eyes as he brought a hand up to her face. "Don't cry. Shh. It's ok." Gingerly, he moved over in the bed so she could lay down next to him. As she climbed in, she kissed him again, pulling away before it could get out of hand. "I should go to my own room," she said as she wrapped herself around him. 

They both chuckled at that, and soon fell asleep.   



	10. Dreams

_They walk out of the villa, Jason in a tux, no tie, and the top shirt button undone. Dressy yet casual. Elizabeth is wearing a simple black dress, a perfect fit. She's laughing at something he says. Jason turns to Francis, telling him to retrieve the limo, but Francis isn't behind them like he usually is. Panic seizes Jason's heart as he makes a move towards Elizabeth, but she's farther away from him than he thought. Turning towards the sound of squealing tires, Jason realizes what's about to go down. He sees Elizabeth standing there, laughing and smiling, as if she didn't hear the car. "Elizabeth! Get down!" he screams, a second too late, for the car is upon them, bullets flying. He dives towards her, but it's too late. She's lying on the ground, shot twice, in the head and neck. "Elizabeth!" he rushes towards her side, shaking her, "Elizabeth, open your eyes! Elizabeth-"_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Elizabeth!!" Jason sits up in his bed, sweat pouring down his face. Panting, his heart racing, he realizes Elizabeth is no longer in the bed with him. He tosses the covers to one side, making his way out of the bed. "Elizabeth!" he calls out, panic filling his heart. Just as he goes to stand up, she walks in with a tray of food. 

"Jason!! Get back in bed!" She helps him into the bed, trying to calm him down. "It's a good thing the nurse didn't catch you like that!" Noticing his sweat soaked gown, she frowns. "What's wrong? Are you ok? Calm down." She sits next to him on the bed, using the washcloth to cool his forehead. 

He pauses to catch his breath. "It was a dream. About you. And when you weren't here when I woke up, I freaked out. Don't do that!" he said as a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. 

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to get you some breakfast." She reached for the tray full of food. 

"Don't let it happen again," he teased. "Is there enough food here?" he motioned to the pancakes, waffles, toast, and other goodies the resident chef and cooked up for him. "You'll share this with me, won't you?" He looked at her expectantly. 

She nodded, "It's not like I have anything better to do," she winked at him. 

As she pulled up a chair, Jason shook his head, "Uh uh, up here," he pointed to the space next to him on the bed. 

She laughed at him, "Down boy," she teased. "You need to eat." She fixed him a plate of pancakes. "Here. The chef has some fresh fruit too, if you'd like that." She fixed herself a plate of waffles. 

He nodded, devouring the pancakes. "I didn't realize how hungry I was!" He reached for some of the waffles. "So what have you been doing here, besides watching over me like a Florence Nightingale?" 

Liz cleared her throat, "Well, not a whole lot." She concentrated on her plate as she answered. "I didn't have time to pack up my paints and canvases. Sonny wanted me here as soon as possible." 

Jason frowned, "So you've been sitting here this whole time, watching me sleep?" 

Liz chuckled, "Well, **I** had to sleep too. And I've gone exploring around the beach, but I've pretty much stuck around." She took another bite of waffles before she continued, "I wanted to be here if you woke up." She looked him straight in the eye so he could see how much his sickness had scared her. 

Jason finished off the glass of juice. "Elizabeth, what does Lucky have to say about this?" Remembering the kisses they had shared the night before, he hoped he hadn't jumped the gun. 

Elizabeth looked at the floor. "He doesn't know I'm here," she said quietly. 

"Elizabeth-" 

She interrupted him, "No Jason, I don't want to talk about it right now. The nurse has some pills you need to take. Get some more sleep, and we'll talk later. You've been shot. You need to recover first. And I'm sure Sonny wants to hear from you. I'll be back in a few hours." 

Jason tried to protest, but Liz would have none of it. She kissed him on the cheek before walking out with the empty tray. 

He watched the nurse walk in to check his vitals. He refused the pills she handed to him, "I'm fine, bring Francis in here. Now. And a phone." The nurse merely nodded. Francis walked in minutes later, phone in hand. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth sat in the sand, looking out on the ocean. A lot had happened in the past week, and she was just trying to play catch up. She was drained, physically and emotionally. Truth is, she had stayed by Jason's beside every minute of everyday, willing him to wake up. Why she couldn't admit it to him, she didn't know. She closed her eyes, remembering the kisses they had shared the night before. _ It isn't possible,_ she thought. _He was just over come with emotion. We're friends, nothing more. _Her mind might believe that, but her heart didn't. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Thanks Sonny, I will." Hanging up the phone, he turned to Francis. "He's flying Liz's art supplies down. I want them set up in the next room immediately. Ok?" Francis nodded as he left. Jason smiled to himself, _she'_s _gonna love this_, he thought. He pressed the call button to call the nurse. "I want this out!" he demanded, pointing to the IV needle. She nodded, knowing that arguing with him would be futile. When she left, he slowly made his way out of bed and over to the bathroom. He flinched at the sight of himself. He needed a shower, **bad.** All of his muscles ached and groaned as he entered the shower. Turning the water as hot as he could take it, he stood under it, letting the water work out the kinks in his muscles. As he stood there, Jason slowly began to remember what had happened when he got shot... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~   


_Carlos' men knew what had happened to their boss. They didn't like it one bit. Carlos may have betrayed Sonny, but that's the way the business is. Sometimes alliances need to be broken. Adrian stepped up to take over where Carlos no longer could. And he was out for blood. He told his employees to make trouble, in the hopes of luring Corinthos down there. Unfortunately for Adrian, Sonny had sent his right hand man. Adrian adjusted his plan, expecting to make an example out of Jason Morgan._

_Unfortunately for Adrian, Jason arrived at the meeting with more bodyguards than Adrian had anticipated. In the end, Adrian and all his men present had been killed. Jason lost two men, and nearly his own life. At least Adrian would no longer be a problem for Sonny._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He was sorry that Elizabeth had been so worried, but touched that she had come down to be with him. He thought about her and Lucky. He knew it had been wrong to kiss her while she was still with him, but he had nearly died! He didn't want to wait any longer. And she had kissed him back, so it wasn't a one sided attraction, he knew that for sure. Rinsing off the soap from his body, he stepped out of the shower feeling 100% better. Brushing his teeth and combing his hair completed the transformation. He felt like a new man as he walked out onto the patio, smelling the ocean breeze. Sure his wounds hurt, but that was a small price to pay for what they had accomplished. 

"Mr. Morgan?" Jason turned at the sound of Francis' voice. "I have the package. Would you like me to set the room up?" 

Jason walked with Francis to the next room, "No, that's ok. I'd like to do it myself. Thanks." He had Francis pry open the crate before he left. _Perfect,_ he thought as he look around the room. Sunlight light poured through the windows and skylights, and you could see the ocean from the picture window. He smiled to himself as he began setting up Elizabeth's supplies. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth made her way back to the villa, figuring Jason would be awake by now. She looked behind her at the man in black, laughing as she thought how uncomfortable he must be in the suit. She knew protection was necessary, but sometimes she felt bad for them. 

She gasped as she entered Jason's room, finding an empty bed. "Francis!" she hollered "Francis! Where's Jason?" she asked frantically as he came running around the corner. 

Before he could answer, Jason came up from behind her, "Boo!" 

Liz nearly jumped out of her skin. "You scared me half to death!" She tried to be mad at him, but the smile on his face melted her heart. 

"I have a surprise for you. Close your eyes." He took her hand, relishing the warmth of it, and led her to the room. Positioning her just inside the door, he stood off to the side, wanting to see her reaction. "Ok, open them." He grinned in anticipation. 

Elizabeth stood in a stunned silence as she took in the sight before her. The room was beautiful, sunlight invading every corner. And in the middle of the floor was her easel, with a blank canvas begging for paint. "How did you do this?" she whispered. 

Jason cleared his throat, "Well, I called Sonny, and he had Johnny run over to your studio to pack up everything. He sent it on his private jet, so it would get here quickly." He walked up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder, "It was the least I could do, since you dropped everything to be here for me. Besides, I have my own selfish reasons for having this here." 

Elizabeth turned to face him, smiling at the look of excitement on his face, "Oh? And what reasons would those be?" 

Jason chuckled, "Well, I happen to enjoy watching you paint." He pushed her towards the canvas, "So paint already!" 

Elizabeth laughed, "Ok, ok." She took him by the arm, leading him to the sofa, "But you have to sit here, with your feet up. No excuses." 

He smiled, knowing he would do almost anything she asked of him. He watched her as she worked. He had no idea what she was painting, but he didn't care. As long as he was able to watch her. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth started to paint Jason, looking so much better than he had earlier that morning. She smiled at herself, thinking about how he had arranged to have all of her stuff brought here. She kept glancing at him lying on the sofa, smiling at her. It gave her goose bumps, knowing he was watching her every move, but they were the good kind of goose bumps. When she looked back at him to capture the way the sun lightened his hair, she wasn't surprised to find him fast asleep. Putting the paint brush and palate down, Liz put a blanket over him. Kissing him on the forehead, she went back to finish her painting. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Three days had passed since Jason woke up. And he felt better than ever. Of course, it didn't hurt that Elizabeth was there to dote on him, making sure he didn't over-do it, but he didn't mind. He liked being around her, even if she was still with Lucky. She made him smile and laugh. Something he hadn't done for a long time. And if felt _good_. 

He hadn't tried to kiss her again, he didn't want to cross the boundary again. Lord knows he _wanted_ to kiss her again, but Jason was able to restrain himself, _barely_. 

Sitting out on the patio enjoying breakfast, he came up with an idea. "Francis?" he called for his guard. 

"Yes Mr. Morgan?" Francis asked as he entered the room. 

Jason looked at him with a devilish grin on his face, "We have work to do." 

Francis nodded as he followed Jason out of the room. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_Go out and enjoy the village_, he had said. _Maybe do a little shopping? A dress, find yourself a nice dress, there's beautiful ones all around the shops. _Elizabeth didn't know what it was for, but she didn't argue. She had wanted to do some exploring, but hadn't had a chance until now. So with bodyguard in tow, she went for it. 

Stopping here and there, she didn't find anything that jumped out at her. Looking at her watch, she realized she'd have to start heading back. _Just one more shop_, she thought to herself. 

As she entered the last of the shops, Elizabeth stopped. Inside the tiny store was a collection of dresses and handmade jewelry. So many dresses to choose from, and each more beautiful than the other. Finally she picked one out, very simple, but absolutely stunning. She grinned as her guard stared, slack jawed. It was white, with purple and blue orchids. The hem just hovering over her feet. It clung to her in all the right places. She smiled at herself in the mirror, knowing tonight would be the night she told him everything.   
  
  
  



	11. Surprise

Jason paced the floor, waiting for Elizabeth to come up. He had dressed up slightly, wearing khaki's and a crisp white shirt, the top three buttons undone. He tried to stay calm, but his nerves were jumping. The waiting was killing him! 

He looked up when he heard Elizabeth clear her throat. Jason had always been a man of few words. But this time words were not an option. He simply stared at her, rendered speechless by her beauty. 

Elizabeth did a slow turn, "What do you think?" she asked. The look on Jason's face said it all, but she wanted to hear him say it. 

"Um, uh," he stammered. Liz laughed as he tried to find the words. "Breathtaking," he finally managed. "Absolutely breathtaking." 

Elizabeth had let her hair dry naturally, giving her a disheveled, yet sexy looking hair-do. The dress she had purchased looked fabulous against her slightly tanned skin, and she was lucky enough to have found a pair of mules to match the dress, and complete the ensemble. 

She blushed, "You don't look so bad yourself." The white shirt also complimented his tan. She had never seen him in anything other than jeans and a tee shirt, so she was impressed that he cleaned up so well. 

He held out his hand, "You ready?" 

She tried to calm her nerves by taking a deep breath. Placing her hand in his, the night began. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He led her to the patio outside his room. While she had been shopping, Jason set up a table for two, and candles, for them to have a candlelight dinner. He had time it perfectly so they could also watch the setting sun. He stood behind her while they watched the sun slip away. He felt her lean against him, and it felt so right. Jason had to fight the urge to put his arms around her. 

When the stars started to come out, he guided her to the table. He pulled out the chair for her, and she giggled nervously. 

The whole thing was beautiful. Jason had asked for lobster tails for the main course, along with a couple of side dishes, followed by dessert: chocolate mousse. 

The wasn't much conversation between the two as they ate. But it was an easy silence, just enjoying each other's company. The few times that their eyes met, the sparks flew. 

As they finished up, Jason stood up and held his hand out to Elizabeth. "Care to take a walk?" He looked into her eyes, enchanted by the light that sparkled inside them. 

She nodded as she stood up to take his hand. He started towards the beach. 

"Wait." She sat back down to remove her shoes. "I want to feel the sand between my toes." 

Jason nodded and followed suit. 

As they made their way towards the water, Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Jason, I think there are some things we need to talk about." 

He nodded, "So do I." 

Elizabeth shivered. He stopped and turned towards her, "Are you cold?" 

Liz nodded. 

"Here," he said, unbuttoning the last few buttons of his shirt. He helped her put it on, resisting the urge to kiss the back of her neck. 

They continued to walk down the beach, hand in hand. She started talking again. 

"Jason," she tried to think of a more subtle way of saying it, but nothing came to mind. "I broke up with Lucky." She paused, then suddenly everything came pouring out. "I broke up with him just before I received Sonny's call. We're different people than we once were. I didn't... I **don't** love him like I did. I love him, but I'm not **in** love with him. Does that make sense? No, maybe it doesn't." She sighed. "We've both changed since the night of his fire. I've grown up, moved on. I can't cling to what we had, because it's not there anymore." She looked up at him finally, "Jason?" 

His mind was reeling. This was not what he had expected she would say. He figured she would apologize for kissing him, but that she still loved Lucky. But she wasn't. He stopped walking. "Elizabeth, what are you trying to tell me?" 

She stood in front of him, taking his hands in hers and looked him straight in the eye. She waited a moment to make sure she had his full attention. 

"I'm falling in love with you." 


	12. Firsts

_I'm falling in love with you._ All of his thoughts ceased to exist, except for those six words. _I'm falling in love with you._

"Jason?" She watched him carefully, trying to interpret his silence. 

Jason snapped out of his trace at the sound of his voice. Finally smiling at her, he didn't say anything, only guiding her further along the beach, to a blanket Francis had laid out for them, along with a small fire to keep them warm. 

Jason sat down first, pulling Liz down to sit in front of him. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her to him, kissing her shoulder, as his mind reeled. 

She turned slightly, so she could see his face. "Jason, I didn't want to tell you until I was sure." She chuckled, "I don't even know why I told you. You don't feel the same way I do." 

Before she could continue, he kissed her, slow and sweet, savoring the fullness of her lips, nibbling that spot on her lower lip where she always did. He smiled at her as he pulled away, "Don't I?" 

"Jason," she whispered, but his mouth was on hers again. She giggled as she broke this kiss this time. "I guess you so." She rested her head against his bare chest. "Why didn't you say anything? I had no idea." 

Jason cleared his throat, "Well, let's see. A - you had a boyfriend. B - I had no idea about you either." He smiled as she blushed. "Speaking of your boyfriend. Well, **ex** boyfriend, how did he take it?" 

Elizabeth sighed. This was what she had been preparing for all day, but it suddenly seemed unnecessary. Still, she did owe it to Jason to explain, or at least try to. She settled back into his arms as she relived the memory. "Well, ever since he came back to Port Charles, things were different. And I don't just mean because he was telling me he didn't love me. But even after that, things just weren't the same anymore. We were clinging to the dreams we had before the fire, and unfortunately those dreams were destroyed by the fire and it's aftermath. I didn't want to admit it because I had fought so hard to get him back. But once I did, it was different. And I finally said enough is enough. I don't want to be 'the girl that loves Lucky' just to have something familiar. I want to be me again. And I realized the only way I could be me was to be without him. I just don't love him the way I used to. I never will." 

Jason closed his eyes, resting his chin on Liz's shoulder as he took this all in. "I'll bet he thinks I have something to do with you're breaking up with him, doesn't he?" He turned to watch her. 

Elizabeth nodded as she looked out onto the ocean. "But you don't. I did this for me. I didn't plan on falling in love with you." 

He grinned as he kissed her shoulder, "Well, Liz, it's been my experience that no one doesn't chooses to fall in love. It just happens." 

"I know," she whispered. 

Jason pulled her closer as she shivered. She looked at him with amusement in her eyes, "So, is there something you want to tell me?" 

"Well, I think I pretty much said it all with the kisses, don't you?" Before she could answer him, he kissed her again, slow and sweet, savoring the feel of her body against his. 

When they parted, he noticed tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked with a frown on his face. 

Liz sniffled as she stared at the fire, "I never thought it could be like this," she whispered. "I feel like I'm drowning, but I'm not scared." She looked at him, "Does that make sense?" 

Jason nodded, "Elizabeth, I can think of a thousand reasons why I should put you on the next plane back to Port Charles and never look back, and only one reason for you to stay, but so help me, I want you to stay." He buried his face in the crook of her neck, filling his nose with the scent of her. 

Elizabeth smiled as she leaned her head against his. "There's no place else I want to be." 

They sat like this, together, until the sun came up. "The perfect ending to a perfect evening," she said as they stood up to leave. 

"I couldn't agree more," he replied before pulling her into a wonderfully sensual kiss. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They spent the rest of the week just enjoying each other's company, learning things about each other, and doing the things that couples in love do. Returning to Port Charles was on the agenda, but neither of them seemed ready to face that fact. Unfortunately, Jason brought it up. 

"You do know we have to go back?" he said quietly as they sat together watching the stars. 

Elizabeth nodded. 

"Nothing's going to change, you know. Nothing could change the way I feel." 

Elizabeth sighed as she leaned against him and closed her eyes. "I know. I knew this wouldn't last forever, but it's been so wonderful." 

Jason nibbled on her shoulder. "It's been better than wonderful." He shifted so he could reach into his pocket. "Elizabeth, there's something I want to give you." He pulled out a box. 

Elizabeth took it, her hands slightly shaking. She gasped as she opened the box. Inside it was a gold chain. As she lifted the chain, the pendant came into view. She raised her hand to stop it from swinging in the breeze. Tears came to her eyes as she studied the heart shaped ruby, turning it this way and that, light reflecting off every angle. 

"A heart, for the woman who stole mine." He kissed her gently, tasting the salt from the tears on her lips. He took the necklace from her, "Let me put it on." Liz pulled her hair up as he pulled the chain around her neck. His fingertips were electric as they glided over her skin. He kissed the nape of her neck before she let her hair fall. "Perfect." 

She smiled, "Jason, I don't - wait, yes I do. Come on." She leapt from his lap, pulling him with her. Entering her art room, she quickly ran over to her easel checking the painting one last time. She smiled as she handed it to him.. 

"Elizabeth," was all he could say. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the canvas, for he was looking at himself, asleep. "Do I really look like this?" he asked her. 

Elizabeth nodded, "I finished this the other day, when you wanted me to paint you, and you fell asleep." 

They both looked down at the painting. Elizabeth managed to capture every nuance of Jason, every flaw, down to the last freckle. The blanket was slung carelessly over his legs, and his left arm extended out, as if he were unconsciously beckoning Liz into the bed with him. The expression on his face was pure contentment. 

Elizabeth broke his trance, "You looked so enchanted, I couldn't help but wonder what you were dreaming about. 

"You," he said without thinking. "You're all I dream about. All I **want** to dream of. Don't you know that by now?" He looked at her with a hunger in his eyes. 

"Jason I-" her words lost as his mouth covered hers. Carefully placing the painting back on the easel, he took her into his arms, raining gentle kisses all over her face and neck. He carried her into his room and gently placed her on the bed. He pulled away for a moment, "Elizabeth, I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to, so if you want to stop-" 

This time is was her mouth stopping his words. Liz pulled Jason down onto the bed with her, kissing him on his lips, his jaw line, down his neck. She rolled over so she could straddle him, chewing on her lower lip, and driving him crazy. 

"You know, when you do that, it drives me insane." He ran his thumb over her lips and she nipped at it playfully. 

"When I do what?" 

"This." He pulled her down and nibbled her lips in the spot she always did. 

She giggled as she pulled away from him, "Oh, that!" She did it again, just to tease him, and he groaned. 

Jason placed his hands behind his head as he watched Elizabeth slowly unbuttoning his shirt. Smiling at the look on her face, and groaning when she leaned down to kiss his chest. 

She teased him relentlessly, her tongue gliding over every plane and contour of his solid torso. Every so often, he felt her teeth graze his skin, and he chuckled at her determination to drive him wild. Ready to jump out of his skin, he pulled her to him and kissed her. As their tongues danced, he rolled them so he was on top, using his arms to keep the full weight of his body off of hers. 

"My turn," he mumbled, tugging on her dress, bringing it up slowly, and helping Liz to get it over her head. He looked into her eyes, making sure she was ready. He teased her as she had teased him, not missing one inch of skin. He felt Liz tugging at his belt buckle, trying to undo it as he kissed her. He grinned at her tenacity, pushing her hand away so he could help. 

Once his pants and boxers were off, he knelt over her as he slowly slid her panties down, tossing them across the room. She opened her legs to him, unconsciously offering herself to him. 

As he entered her, he kissed her, and they both fell.... 


	13. Homecoming

Elizabeth opened one eye, squinting against the sunlight streaming in through the windows. She rolled over to face away from the sun, and found herself looking into Jason's clear blue eyes. 

"Morning," he said as he kissed her. 

"Mmmm. Good morning." She smiled at him, lifting a hand to his face. "How long have you been up?" 

He shrugged, "A while." 

"Watching me sleep," she said with a grin. 

"Pretty much. You look like an angel when you sleep, do you know that?" 

"I don't watch myself sleep too often, so I'd have to say no," she said, teasing him. 

He groaned as he pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her. 

"Can't we have one more day?" she asked as she ran her fingers lightly up and down his arm. 

He stopped nibbling on her neck long enough to answer her, "I'm sorry. But the plane won't leave until we're ready." 

She turned her head to look at him, "Ok then, I'll never be ready!" They laughed as they kissed. She forced him to his back as she straddled him again. This time it would be her turn to take charge, and she was going to love every minute of it... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Elizabeth, move in with me." 

"Above Jake's?" she said, trying to mask her obvious loathing of the place. 

He grinned, "No, no, no. I talked to Sonny earlier. Seems he talked Alexis into moving into the room just below his, so I can have my old penthouse back." 

She was about to say yes when she remembered, "What about Carly?" It was no secret that Elizabeth and Carly couldn't get along, "If Carly knew about us, she'd-" 

"She would deal with it," he said, cutting her off. "She's married to Sonny, she loves him. And if she knows what's good for her, she'll be happy that I'm happy." 

Elizabeth rolled over to face him, "Are you?" 

"Am I what?" 

"Are you happy?" 

He sighed, knowing this was bound to come up. "Elizabeth, I am happier than I thought I could be. Truth is, I was never really happy until I met you. I thought I was happy with Robin, and Lord knows Carly isn't a person, she's an event. And they both loved me, but neither of them were good for me. Robin because she kept trying to change me, getting me out of Sonny's business. I didn't know how to function outside Sonny's world. But I did it to make Robin happy. And Carly, well, the best thing she did for me was to give me Michael. And for a year that was enough, but she took him away from me in the end." Pain clouded his eyes as he remembered Michael. "Elizabeth, you accept me, Jason Morgan, Sonny Corinthos' right hand man, and all around tough guy. You're there for me, to listen, to say nothing, to change nothing. You won't take what I can't give. And I promise you Liz, there's nothing I wouldn't give you. You let me be me, and that's more than I could've dreamed for." 

He leaned towards her and kissed the tears that fell. "Please don't cry. I love you Elizabeth Webber, and that will never change." 

Liz smiled through her tears. "I love you back Jason Morgan." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sonny arranged for them to arrive during the night, so no one would know they were in town yet. Sorel's men had been making trouble for Sonny ever since Sorel had been convicted of Ted Wilson's murder. The less they knew about Jason's return the better. 

Anything that had not made the trip to his island from Elizabeth's studio had been quietly, but quickly packed up and brought to Jason's penthouse. Same as her things in her room above Kelly's. That job was particularly rushed because of it's proximity to Lucky's, and the need for complete secrecy. Luckily for Sonny, Tammy understood, and complied with his wishes. 

The only thing left to be dealt with was Carly, and that was **not** going to be easy. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Carly!" Sonny bellowed. 

"Just a minute!" she yelled back to him. 

Johnny opened the door, "Miss Webber's here." 

"Thanks Johnny, but please call me Elizabeth, or Liz." 

"Sure Miss Webber." She laughed as he closed the door. 

Sonny motioned for Elizabeth to wait in the kitchen as he heard Carly come down the stairs. "What is it Sonny?" 

Sonny motioned to the door, "Jason said he had to talk to you." 

Carly squealed, "Jason's home?! Good!" She ran to the door, leaving Sonny behind, shaking his head. 

Elizabeth poked her head out from the kitchen when she heard the door slam shut, "She's gone?" 

Sonny nodded. 

"What now?" 

Sonny sighed, knowing it would take awhile. "Are you hungry?" he asked with a smile. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Before Jason could say 'hello', Carly had her arms around his neck, "I am so glad you're home! I missed you! Where have you been?!" 

Jason winced at her tight hug, his bullet wounds still a little tender. "Business," he replied simply. 

Carly laughed, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Poor little Carly can't know anything. Fine, fine, ok." She quieted down when she saw the seriousness in his eyes. "Jase, is everything ok? You're ok right? You're going to stick around for awhile?" 

He coughed as he sat down on the couch. "Carly, we need to talk." She frowned at him, but sat down. "I was taking care of some business for Sonny. Carly, I got shot." He held his hands up, stopping her before she could ask a million questions. "As you can see, I'm ok. I had a slight infection, but I made it out ok." 

"Yeah, but Jase, you were shot, and all alone. Why couldn't Sonny send you here, at least then you could have some company." 

Jason sighed, trying to think of the best way to tell her, "Carly, I wasn't alone." He braced himself for the impending tirade, "Liz Webber was with me." 

"Little Lizzie Webber," she said through clenched teeth. "How in the hell did she FIND you?!? God she's got some nerve trying to weasel her way into y-" 

"CARLY." The harshness in Jason's voice stopped her cold. "Sonny sent her to me." He didn't go into the details, knowing that it was none of her business. 

Carly nodded, "She would go to him, use him, with those big blue eyes, 'Pwease Sonny, tell me where Jason is. I need him to pwotect me.'" Carly bats her eyelashes for effect. 

Jason shook his head. "No Carly, I asked for her." 

Carly looked at him, as if seeing him for the first time. "Oh yeah, yeah, ok. Sure you asked for her," she said, chuckling. 

Jason simply started at her, waiting for her to finish.   
  
"Ok, so, you're here, you're fine now. Why are you telling me all this?" 

"I'm in love with her Carly, and I want you to accept that. Carly-" he held up a hand to keep her quiet. "Carly, I LOVE HER. And she loves me. Nobody tricked anybody." He paused before spilling the last of the beans. "She's going to move in here with me." 

Too dumbfounded for words, Carly stood up and walked out the door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth dived into the pasta Sonny had fixed them for dinner, "Mmm. Sonny, this is fantastic! Could you teach me how to cook?" 

He nodded as he swallowed, "Yeah, but not in my kitchen." He smiled at her. _She's gonna be good for him_, he thought. 

They talked easily about Elizabeth's aspirations of finishing art school. 

"Yeah, I don't know what I'll d-" 

"SONNY!" 

The door slammed shut behind Carly. "Sonny can you believ-" Carly finally noticed Liz at the table, "You! Get out of my house! You little bitch! You insinuate yourself into his life, make him think he loves you, for what? Huh? What are you going to get out of this?! Money? Sex? Well let me tell you something HONEY, I won't let you. You will not hu-" 

"CARLY." 

She stopped suddenly, both Jason and Sonny were standing in front of her now, between her and Elizabeth. 

Elizabeth got up from her chair, "Thanks for dinner Sonny." He nodded, keeping his eyes on his hot headed wife. "Carly," Liz said, nodding politely before leaving the penthouse. 

Jason stood directly in front of Carly, "Carly, you had better get used to it. She's not going anywhere." He nodded to Sonny, before exiting as well. 

Carly looked at Sonny, "What?" 

Sonny shook his head, knowing this would not be the end of it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Is pizza ok?" Jason asked as he dropped onto the couch. 

Elizabeth curled up next to him, "Whatever. I'm not so hungry after Sonny fed me." She pulled him to her, resting his head in her lap. Running her fingers through his hair, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry this is causing so much trouble." 

Jason reached up to touch her face, "You're not the problem, Carly is. Don't let her get to you. I'll instruct Johnny not to let her in here, and you can even lock the door if you want." Jason sat up to take her in his arms. "Elizabeth, you realize your life will never be the same? I mean, well, I'm going to post a guard on you 24/7, have a driver for you, all that. You realize that don't you?" He looked at her with concern in his eyes. 

She smiled at him, "As long as I'm with you, nothing else matters." She kissed him softly. 

Jason looked around at all the boxes in the penthouse. "I think we should get to work." 

Elizabeth looked around, groaning at the thought of unpacking. "Skip it, we'll work on it tomorrow. I have another idea." She took his hand as she led him up to their bedroom. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He put down the phone and chuckled, "Welcome home Mr. Morgan." 


	14. Good Byes

Elizabeth adjusted well to the changes. It wasn't anything she hadn't been through before, when Sorel had first approached her. This was just more permanent. She even forgot about the guard following her sometimes. The driver was something she really didn't want, but it was for her safety, so she complied. 

Eventually Carly got over Elizabeth living with Jason. The were by no means friends, but they could be civil towards each other, and that was more than either Sonny or Jason could've hoped for. 

As far as Jason's business, Elizabeth knew to stay out of it. She did feel kind of guilty though when he asked about her day, and she couldn't reciprocate the gesture. 

Lately, though, Elizabeth felt that something was off. Jason had been a little more distant towards her, more formal. And she could've sworn there were two bodyguards on her now, but they did such a good job of stay inconspicuous, she wasn't sure. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason sighed as he rolled over. Watching Liz sleep was the most relaxing thing he could do, but tonight it wouldn't calm his nerves. 

He stroked her cheek gently, memorizing her, every angle, every curve. The color of her lips, the way her eyelashes brushed against her cheeks. 

He had been afraid for her from the very beginning, knew what kind of danger she was in, even if she didn't want to admit it to herself. 

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her to him as tightly as he dared. Burying his face in her hair, he closed his eyes, but never slept. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth groggily opened her eyes. The room seemed too dark for it to be morning, so she checked the clock. 

"9:27! Jason Morgan!! You let me oversleep!!" she yelled to him as she jumped out of the bed. She turned around as she zipped up her jeans. "Jason -" she stopped when she realized he wasn't in bed. She searched the penthouse, calling out his name. 

When she reached the living room, she gasped. On the table was two dozen long stemmed red roses, and a card... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Take care her for me Sonny." 

He shook the hand of his best friend and walked out the door. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth smiled at the roses, and sat down to read the card:__

Elizabeth,   
I'm so sorry, Liz. I have to leave. For your safety. Sorel wants me.   
And he'll use you to get to me. I can't let that happen, so I'm leaving.   
I wish I could say this in person, but you would try to stop me, and I   
don't think I would be strong enough to say no to you. Please   
remember that I'll always love you, no matter where I am. You'll   
always be in my heart. Please try to understand. I never meant   
for this to happen. I will love you until the day I die Elizabeth Webber.   
Please love me back. 

Yours always,   
Jason 

_I've never seen this kind of love_   
_The kind that won't wash away_   
_And then leave you in the dark_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you___

Elizabeth dropped the card before reading the signature. "Jason," she whispered. "Jason," she said a little louder. Tears started streaming down her face. 

"JASON!!" 

_I've never kissed a sweeter mouth_   
_I've never been swept away_   
_It's what dreams are made up of_   
_Don't you know I could not survive_   
_Without you in my life_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you_

Jason took one last look up at the penthouse windows. "I love you Elizabeth Webber, please love me back," he whispered into the air. Revving up his motorcycle, he let the tears fall as he sped away from the woman he loved. 

_I've never seen this kind of love_   
_The kind that won't slip away_   
_Yes I'm soaring through your heart_   
_Don't you know I could not survive_   
_Without you in my life_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you_   
_I would die for you_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sonny sighed as he fixed himself a drink. Finally able to get Elizabeth to calm down, he took this chance to think about things. Sitting down in front of the fire, he stared past it, reliving the past 36 hours... 

_"Damn it Sonny! This is the third time! And Elizabeth has no idea what's going on!"___

_Jason was not one to loose his temper, but Sonny could understand his frustration. Three attempts on the life of the woman he loves would be enough to break any man.___

_"She hasn't needed to know Jason," Sonny said quietly.___

_"That doesn't matter! **I** know! That's enough!" Jason sat down on the couch and sighed. "Sonny, that's it. I can't do this to her. She's been hurt so much. And," he laughed bitterly, "she trusts me. God help her, she has total faith in me."___

_"And you haven't let her down," Sonny tried to point out.___

_"Yes, I did. I let her down by letting her love me."___

_"Jason, you didn't **let** her do anything. She was going to love you whether you liked it or not."___

_"I let her in, Sonny. I let her into my life knowing full well what would happen!" Jason grabbed the brandy decanter and pitched it into the fire.___

_"Jason, you are a human being, whether you like it or not. You cannot be Superman, on call 24 hours a day. There is only so much you can control. Elizabeth understands that. Damn it man, that's why you lover her so much!"___

_Jason just sat there with his head in his hands, "I have to leave."___

_Sonny nodded, "Yeah, go see her. You'll feel better."  
  
Jason stood up to look his friend in the eye, "No Sonny, I mean leave town. Leave Elizabeth. She won't be safe unless I do."___

_Sonny immediately started shaking his head, "No man, she won't be safe if you leave. She'll be miserable, but she won't be safe."___

_"She'll be **safer**, and that's what matters."___

_Sonny tried to speak, but Jason cut him off, "I've made up my mind. I'll leave tomorrow. Make the arrangements."___

_They looked at each other, Sonny finally resigning himself to the fact that Jason's mind was not about to be changed. He nodded as his best friend walked towards the door.___

_"Sonny?"___

_"Yeah?"___

_"She's going to need you. I know how Carly feels, but please..."___

_Sonny nodded, "You never have to ask."___

_"And let her stay in the penthouse. As little, or as long as she wants."___

_"You know she won't leave. She'll wait for you Jason."___

_Jason nodded, he knew it, but didn't want to say it.___

_Sonny poured himself a drink, "She can't leave anyway, she's safest there."___

_"Yeah."___

_Jason looked around the room, as if he had forgotten something. He watched Sonny, but his friend wouldn't look at him. Finally deciding everything was taken care of, Jason walked out of Sonny's penthouse to begin to say good bye to Elizabeth._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Sonny?" 

Sonny jerked free from his memories at the sound of Elizabeth's voice. "Hey," he said as he tried to paste a smile on his face. 

She made her way down the stairs and sat next to him on the couch. She looked over at the half full brandy snifter in his hands. Without asking, she took it from him, gulping the alcohol until it was gone. Grimacing as the liquid worked it's way into her stomach, she handed him back the snifter. 

"I could have gone with him," she said softly, watching the fire dance in the fireplace. 

"I know," Sonny agreed. 

"He didn't have to leave me." She blinked back the tears threatening to spill out. 

"I know." 

"I would've been ok." She sniffled as she stood up to study his picture on the mantle. She picked it up, running her finger down the side of the frame. Filling with rage, she flung the picture across the room, watching as it crashed against the door. Johnny burst into the room to make sure everything was ok, but Sonny waved him out. 

"I loved him! I trusted him to never leave me!" She fell to the floor as she started to cry. 

Placing his glass on the ottoman, Sonny made his way over to Elizabeth, gingerly picking her up to bring her back upstairs. 

She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder as she cried. "I love him," she whispered, over and over again. 


	15. Life

Elizabeth chewed on her lower lip as she waited for the doctor to come in. Remembering what Jason had told her once, she ceased immediately. 

"Miss Webber?" The doctor asked as she entered the room. 

Elizabeth smiled nervously, "That's me." 

The doctor smiled, trying to put her at ease. Motioning Liz to lie back, she snapped on a pair of latex gloves, "Shall we get started?"   
  
Elizabeth nodded, and began to pray. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Johnny opened the door, "Miss Webber," he announced to Sonny. 

Sonny turned to her, a sad smile on his face. _She still hasn't recovered from it,_ he thought to himself. _He's been gone two months and she's still walking around like a lost child_. 

Sonny walked up to her, giving her a hug, and led her to the sofa. He looked down at the way Elizabeth was clutching onto her purse straps, her knuckles pure white. He frowned, "Elizabeth? Is everything ok?" He sat down next to her, putting an arm around her. 

"Um. No. I need to see Jason." 

"Elizabeth-" 

"Sonny, I'm pregnant." She looked him square in the eye, so he would know she meant it. 

Everything seemed to halt at her announcement. Even Sonny was rendered speechless, and that didn't happen often. He took her hand in his, "Um, Elizabeth, I can't get a hold of him. He calls me, and not on a regular basis." 

"Then the next time he calls, you let me talk to him. **I** want to tell him Sonny. This is **our** child, and **I'm** going to tell him." She stood up and walked towards the door. 

"Elizabeth." 

She stopped, but didn't turn around. 

"If you need anything-" he began to say. 

"What I **need** is Jason. Get him home, and everything will be all right." She walked out the door without turning back. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth had continued working with Chloe Morgan, even after Jason left. Chloe was Elizabeth's closest friend ever since Emily and Zander had run off together. Chloe wasn't Jason, but Elizabeth didn't want her to be. 

"So how's my girls?" Chloe smiled as Elizabeth walked into the L&B building. 

Elizabeth rubbed her growing belly. She was starting her fifth month, very glad to be rid of the morning sickness. And although Liz had no desire to know what the sex of the baby was - as long as it was happy and healthy -- Chloe insisted it was a girl. 

"We're fine," Elizabeth replied as she put her things away. 

Chloe detected the sadness in her friend's voice, "He still doesn't know?" She walked over to Liz to hug her. 

Liz shook her head as the separated. Wiping away a tear, she cursed herself under her breath. "He hasn't contacted Sonny." 

Chloe nodded, not quite knowing what to say. 

Elizabeth finally collected herself, "How about we get to work?" she said as cheerfully as possible. 

Chloe smiled, admiring Elizabeth for her fierce determination. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sitting out on the docks reminded her so much of Jason, but she had to be there. She felt closest to him when she was there. Every once in awhile she even brought her sketch pad along and sketched a memory of Jason's face. 

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, filling her lungs to capacity. 

"Elizabeth." 

She tensed at the sound of her name, for she recognized the voice. 

"Lucky," she replied. 

Lucky came down the steps and sat at the opposite side of the bench. "How are you?" 

Elizabeth turned to him, "I'm fine Lucky, just fine." 

Lucky nodded as he turned towards the river. "And Jason?" 

Elizabeth didn't reply. 

"You did go to him, didn't you? After we broke up?" 

She closed her eyes as she remembered the pain she cause him that day. _Was that really only 10 months ago?_ She asked herself. _So much has happened since then._

She smiled sadly, "Yes, I did." 

Lucky nodded. "And you're happy?" 

Elizabeth nodded silently, brushing away the tear that fell before Lucky could see it, but it was too late. 

"Elizabeth, what's-" That's when he noticed the slight bulge in her jacket. He groaned in realization. "Please tell me that isn't his," he said, pointing to her stomach. "What happened? He got you knocked up and then left you?" 

"Lucky!" she cried out of shock. "How dare you say that about Jason! We **love** each other!" 

Lucky stood up from the bench, rage coming out of every pore on his body, "Well if he loves you so much, where is he now? Huh?? He sure as hell wouldn't let you out by yourself in your condition, guards or no guards." He looked around at the thought of the guards, but didn't spot them. "Don't you even have any guards Elizabeth?" He scoffed, "You know, I thought you were smart. You wouldn't let anybody tell you how to lead your life. But here you are, pregnant, and no one to care for you. Well I'll tell you something Elizabeth Webber. You deserve it. I was the best thing that ever happened to you, and you threw it away for a romp in the sack with Jason Morgan! You getting _exactly_ what you deserve!" 

She stood up to face him, hatred clouding her eyes, "Lucky Spencer, the best thing that ever happened to me was Jason Morgan." He flinched as she spat the words out at him. "And I'm no letting anybody telling me how to lead my life! Jason had to leave, but he will be back. He actually loves ME, Elizabeth Webber, imperfections and all. He doesn't force me to be something I'm not, Mr. Face." He grimaced as she reminded him of the way he nearly forced her into the Face of Deception campaign. "Jason loves me, Lucky. And I love him. You're the one who missed out Lucky Spencer." 

He studied her, taking in the changes she'd endured after she left him. Lucky nodded in defeat, turning on his heel to walk away. 

Elizabeth watched him until he disappeared behind a building. Once he was out of sight, she collapsed on the bench, gulping in the air around her. Francis noticed this and began walking towards her, to make sure she was ok. Before he took two steps, she fell to the ground. 

"Louis! Get the car!" he yelled to his partner before rushing to Elizabeth's side. 


	16. Homecoming II

She could hear voices around her, talking quietly, not paying attention to her. 

"How is she?" 

"She'll be ok." 

"And the baby?" 

Elizabeth tensed, not wanting to hear the answer. 

"The baby's fine." 

"Thank you doctor." 

She heard footsteps leaving, and dared to open her eyes. The lights were bright at first, but her eyes adjusted slowly to the environment around her. 

She felt a hand on hers. "Hey there." 

Liz recognized the voice. She licked her lips, but it didn't help. 

"Need some water?" 

She nodded, opening her mouth to grant the straw entrance. The cool water felt good as it slid down her throat. 

"Sonny." 

"That's me." He smiled at her. "You're in the hospital. You passed out on the docks, do you remember?" 

Elizabeth nodded and motioned for more water. Taking a couple of sips, she felt somewhat better. "I felt dizzy, couldn't get any air," she whispered. She remembered the baby and sat up. "Sonny-" 

He held her back, forcing her to lay down. "The baby is fine. You're blood pressure was a little high, that's why you passed out." Sonny cleared his throat, "Do you remember what happened Liz?" 

She nodded again as relief flooded over her, "Lucky. We argued." 

Sonny nodded, and was about to speak, but was interrupted by Chloe. 

"Liz!" she cried, embracing her friend. "You're ok right?" 

Elizabeth nodded. 

Chloe turned to Sonny for confirmation, satisfied with his nod. 

Sonny stood up, leaning over Elizabeth. "Listen hon, I have to go take care of some stuff. I won't be gone too long, ok? Get some rest." He kissed her on he cheek, giving her a big smile. "And listen to the doctors." He nodded to Chloe on his way out. 

"Sonny's right. You need some rest. So I'll just sit here and keep you company until he comes back, ok?" but her question was never answered, for Elizabeth was fast asleep. Chloe smiled as she pulled out her sketch pad. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Lucky turned towards the knock on his door. Trying to figure out who it was, he opened it before asking. Before he could say a word, Sonny and Johnny had forced their way in his room. 

Lucky frowned at the sight of the men. "What do you want?" 

Sonny walked right up to Lucky, their faces separated by mere inches. "You spoke to Elizabeth." 

"Yeah, so what about it?" Lucky replied. 

"She's pregnant you know." 

"Yeah, no thanks to Ja-"   
  
"SHUT UP." 

Lucky froze, not understanding what was happening. 

Sonny continued, "You upset her." 

"We fought, it happens." 

"Well you won't fight with her again, do you understand me? In fact, you won't even speak to her again. Got it?" 

"Listen, Sonny, Port Charles is a small town we-"   
Sonny cut him off, "NEVER." 

Lucky frowned, "Is she ok?" 

"She passed out." 

The color drained from Lucky's face, "Oh my God, I didn't mean for that to happen." 

"You will stay away from her," Sonny said, an order instead of a request. 

"Is she ok, I mean she did-" 

"She's none of your concern," he said as he turned to leave. 

"Sonny, come on, man. Tell me she did-" 

His question was cut short as Johnny slammed the door behind him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sonny, Carly, and Elizabeth sat around the table, sharing dinner. Carly and Elizabeth were almost friends now, and that surprised nobody more than themselves. 

Sonny excused himself from the table as the phone rang. 

Elizabeth and Carly waved him away as they shared morning sickness stories. Carly's nightmare was just beginning, but that was all right with her. 

"Hello?" Elizabeth noticed Sonny tense up when the voice on the other end started talking. _It couldn't be,_ she thought. _Is this it? Do I finally get to tell him?___

Sonny turned to the table, staring at Elizabeth. "Yeah, she's fine. Listen, can you hang on one second? Carly's buggin' me." He held out the phone to Elizabeth. He hated doing this to Jason, but it was Elizabeth's news to share. 

Liz took the phone in her hand, her heart beating a mile a minute. "Jason?" she whispered into the phone. She heard him catch his breath. "Jason, please don't hang up. Please, there's something..." her voice caught in her throat as the tears started to fall. How could she know just hearing him breathe would do this to her? 

Sonny took the phone from her. "Listen man. You need to get back, like now. She needs you. Now, and I won't take no for an answer." 

Sonny stopped to let Jason get a word in, but all he got was a dial tone. He cursed Jason, as he watched Carly try to comfort Elizabeth. 

He walked over to the women, gently picking up Elizabeth. "I'll be back in a second babe," he said to his wife. She nodded in understanding, finally understanding just how much Elizabeth loved Jason. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth stayed in bed longer than usual that morning. Clutching the extra pillow, she rolled over, squinting her eyes against the sun light. _Does the room always have to be so bright?_ she complained to herself. Jason liked it most because the sunlight woke him up first, giving him a chance to watch her as she slept. 

_Jason._

His name echoed through her mind. She had blown her chance to tell him about the baby two nights ago, and had been punishing herself ever since. _What if he doesn't call again?___

Liz placed a hand on her protruding belly. Only two more months left. _I wonder if she'll look like him,_ she thought to herself. She smiled as the baby kicked to wish her good morning. She sat up, reluctant to start the day, when she heard a noise downstairs. She tensed, waiting for the shout of the guards, telling her to stay there, but there was none. 

_Must be Sonny,_ she thought to herself. He came over occasionally to make her breakfast. Not that she minded, his meals were delicious, and she always welcomed the free lesson. 

She dressed quickly, not wanting to miss a single second of her lesson for the day. Slowly making her way down the stairs she frowned, not hearing the noises that Sonny makes when he takes out the dishes he plans on using. 

"Sonny?" 

She turned the corner to enter the kitchen, but was frozen in her tracks. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_"Listen man. You need to get back, like now. She needs you."_ He hung up the phone before his friend could finish. He didn't want to hear the rest. Leaving her had been the hardest thing he'd ever done. Going back hadn't been an option. She was safe, and relatively happy. But hearing her voice, he could picture her on the other end. The tears that fell from her face. He tried blocking it out, but it wouldn't work. So he grabbed his jacket and left. 

Nobody knew he was coming back. And that's the way he wanted it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He turned around at the sound of her voice, bracing himself for the pummeling he would have to endure. He heard her gasp when she realized it wasn't Sonny in her kitchen. 

When he opened his eyes to look at her, he couldn't believe it. "Elizabeth you're-" 

"Pregnant," she finished for him. She looked down at her stomach, rubbing it gently. 

He took a step towards her, flinching as she tensed up. "Elizabeth.." There were no words to describe what he felt. 

"Are you staying?" she asked point blank. 

"Of course." 

She nodded, seemingly glued to the floor beneath her. 

"Ok, then." She glanced at him once more before turning to go back upstairs. 

He let her go as he tried to gather his thoughts. Breaking out of his daze, he dumped the water back into the sink, and raced up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. 

He stood in the doorway, studying her. She had her back to him, and he noticed she was crying. Every shudder, every tear broke his heart. 

Sensing his presence she spoke, "Don't you ever do that again, Jason Morgan." 

Jason stepped into the room to peel off his dirty clothes. Putting on a pair of sweats, he crawled into bed with her, and wrapped his arms around her. 

"Promise me." 

"I promise," he whispered into his ear. 

Hearing the words, she finally relented, letting him pull her to him.   
  
"I'm sorry Elizabeth," he whispered to her, but she didn't hear him, for she had fallen asleep. 


	17. Family

_Two months later..._

"Push Elizabeth!! This is the last one!" The doctor urged her on, even though Elizabeth barely had the energy to speak. 

"Jason, I can't, I can't do this!" she said between breaths. She wouldn't know what to do if he hadn't been there with her. 

Sitting behind her with his arms and legs surrounding her he brushed her hair back, "Elizabeth," he whispered barely loud enough for her to hear. "You are the strongest woman I know. You brought me back to you, didn't you? And you can do this. Do you know how I know? Because I love you, and you love me. And because we want to love our baby. Push for me babe, push." 

Liz grabbed his legs as she gave one final push. "Come... ON!" She fell against him finally, gasping for oxygen. 

"Liz," he said breathlessly, "look." He pointed towards the end of the table. 

She could hear the cries before she could see the source. 

The doctor raised his arms to show the new parents. "It's a girl!" he smiled broadly. 

"A girl," Elizabeth repeated. She looked up at Jason, "We have a daughter." 

He smiled down on her with tears in his eyes. "Yes we do." 

Jason stayed in the bed with Elizabeth while the nurses cleaned her up and measured her. Jason's hand shook when the nurse handed him the scissors to cut the umbilical cord. Finally they handed her over to the proud parents. 

"What should we name her?" he said into her ear, admiring everything about his new little girl. 

Without even thinking Elizabeth replied, "Lila Nicole." 

Jason nodded, letting his tears fall. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"She looks like you." 

"If you say so." 

"She's got your beautiful blue eyes." Liz looked at him, the pride on his face impossible to miss. 

"That they are." He smiled at his sleeping daughter. _This is so perfect,_ he thought to himself. _What was I thinking when I left her?_

Elizabeth caught the flicker of pain ripple over his face. "Give her a kiss, Daddy, I'm taking her to her room. I think it's about time we talked." She watched him lean over her tiny body, being so careful. 

She picked Lila up, being careful not to wake her. 

Jason watched with admiration as his girls left the room. Knowing what this conversation was going to be about, he remembered the day he came home... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_Liz woke up to two blue eyes fixated on her. She jerked away at first, not remembering who it was. Jason frowned, knowing how much pain he had caused her._

_"How many months?"_

_"Seven."_

_He nodded. "Everything's well?"_

_She nodded, not telling him about the encounter with Lucky, and the subsequent hospital stay._

_"Elizabeth, I'm sor-" She placed a hand on his lips to prevent him from finishing._

_"Not now," she whispered._

_He understood, letting Liz do it her way. She looked him up and down, wrinkling her nose in distaste. "Go take a shower!"_

_He laughed at her, but did as she wished. When he finished, she has fallen back asleep. He slipped under the covers, letting her sleep. When he awoke again, she had found her way to him, her forehead resting on his back, her arms around his chest. He could hear her crying quietly and felt the tears on his back._

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They hadn't talked about his departure since he had come home. It was inevitable that it would be discussed, but he understood Liz's need to take things at her own pace. 

She closed the door when she returned, but turned the baby monitor on, just in case. Sighing, she lay down next to him in the bed, tracing lines along his chest. She didn't know how to begin. 

"Jason.." she couldn't think of anything, the words to express her anguish and frustration the day he left her. 

"Elizabeth, there's something you need to know first." He swallowed, not knowing how she would react. "There were three attempts on your life, before I left. I never told you because I didn't want to scare you. I thought leaving would make it better for you." 

"Well you were wrong, Jason. You were the only thought in my head during those seven months. Poor Chloe, I could barely get any work done for her! Not to mention Sonny coming over here every other day." He smiled inwardly, liking the fact that she thought about him constantly. 

"But you were safe." 

"I'm safer when I'm with YOU." She looked into his eyes then, drowning in the storm of emotions they tried unsuccessfully to hide. "I don't want to be anywhere else but right her, in your arms, ever. This is the safest place for me. If you take that away from me, what have I got?" 

"A longer life span," he said quietly. 

"I don't care! I could die tomorrow from a heart attack!! As long as you're here to love me, I wouldn't care!" 

"But I would." 

"Jason, whatever happens happens. You can't control every single thing! And you sure as hell can't control my life! That's what Lucky tried to do when he told me to stop talking to you. WHY on EARTH would I want that again?!" 

"Elizabeth, I wasn't trying to control your life-" 

"Yes you were!! You didn't give me a chance to choose! The man I love, or a safe and loveless life. DUH! Jason, I would choose you. I chose you then, and I choose you now! I could have a hundred threats on my life, I don't care, as long as I'm with you." He tried to speak, but she kept going, "I know, I know. You can't keep me safe one hundred percent of the time. I understand that Jason, I really do. But you know what? It's worth it!" She stopped to calm herself down and quit yelling. 

"It's worth the danger, as long as I can wake up in your arms, and look into those beautiful blue eyes. If someone held a gun to my head and told me the only way I could stay alive was if you were gone, I'd pull the trigger myself." 

Jason tried putting that image out of his head, "Elizabeth-" he tried again, but she interrupted him, again. 

"I know Jason. I remember what you said that night on the beach. There's a thousand reasons for you to leave and never look back. But now you don't have just one reason to stay, you have two." 

She took his face in her hands, forcing him to look straight at her. "Jason Morgan, if you leave, I will follow you. I'll take Lila with me, and we'll find you." She placed a hand on his chest. "You seem to forget Jason, I know your heart. I won't ask for more than you can give. And there's nothing you can't give me." 

"Except for a normal life," he said, more to himself than to her. 

"Normal is a relative term," she said with a smile on her face. 

He laughed in agreement. His life had been anything but normal since the night he got into the car with AJ. 

"So we're agreed?" she asked him. "No leaving in the middle of the night? And if I'm in danger, the only one to protect me is you. Ok?" 

Jason kissed her softly, "I don't agree with it, but do I really have a choice?" He chuckled at the look on her face. 

"Jason Morgan-" it was his turn to interrupt her, with another kiss. 

"I love you Elizabeth." 

"I love you back." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

His laugh was low and menacing. 

"We must strike while the iron is hot gentlemen." 


	18. Betrayal

"You know Jase, Carly isn't so bad." 

Jason looked up from his pizza, "Who are you and what have you done with Elizabeth?" he joked. 

"I'm serious! Today when we were shopping for stuff for their baby's room, she was a totally different Carly." 

Jason nodded, "I know. I saw it with Michael, but nobody believed me." He shrugged, "Their problem though I guess." 

Elizabeth nodded as she finished off a slice of pizza. As she stood to start cleaning up, there was a knock at the door. 

Elizabeth went to answer the door. 

"Sonny!" She tried to keep him out in the hall so he wouldn't see the pizza her and Jason had ordered for their dinner, but he pushed his way in. 

"Oh man," he groaned when he spotted the delivery box. "You guys kill me, you realize that, right?" 

Jason just shrugged, "We can't all be master chefs like you." 

"I never said you had to be, but it's not like I don't live right across the hall!" He laughed, but Liz and Jason knew he was serious. Ever since Liz and delivered Lila, they had little time to do anything for themselves, let alone fix a home cooked dinner. But that was all right with them. 

A cry came from upstairs. "I'll go check that," Elizabeth said, knowing Sonny hadn't come over to criticize their dinner. 

"Sorel's moving men in. Quietly." Sonny looked at the fire in the fireplace. "Really quietly. Benny almost didn't catch it." 

"How many?" Jason asked. 

"Too many." 

"Get another guard on Elizabeth and Lila." Jason paused, "If anything happens to them, I'll never forgive myself, Sonny." 

Sonny merely nodded, he felt the same way about Michael, Carly, and the child inside her. "Benny wants to take him out." 

"Should have been done a long time ago." 

Sonny nodded again, "I thought he would learn." Sonny rubbed his face as he sighed. "I'll set up a meeting." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Terrific. I will be ready." 

He placed the phone on the cradle. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Elizabeth?" Jason peeked into Lila's room to see if she was still there. 

"I'm in here!" she called from their bedroom. 

Stopping at the door frame, Jason could only smile. "My beautiful girls. What would I do without you?" He carefully lay down on the bed, careful not to disturb a hungry Lila. 

"What's the matter?" Elizabeth could see it in his eyes. His worry, his pain. 

"I'm putting another guard on you, for now." He didn't say why, and she didn't ask. 

"OK. Well, I'm going to meet Monica and Lila for lunch tomorrow. I told you that, didn't I?" 

Jason nodded, caressing little Lila's cheek. "Grandmother will be pleased to finally meet her great grand daughter. And she'll like you too. Just be careful. Edward might follow her."   
  
Elizabeth took his hand, holding it against her face. "I can handle Edward," she said as she kissed the palm of his hand. 

"I know," he replied as he moved closer to his daughter. "Just be careful in general, ok?" 

"Of course." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_At the same time:_

"Carly!" 

"I'm in the baby's room!" she called from upstairs. 

She looked up from her wall paper swatches as he came into the room, "Hey babe, what's up? Do you think we should just do a border, or paper the thing?" She looked back at the swatches. 

Sonny chuckled to himself, "I don't care, really. You do what you think is best." 

"You're no help!" 

Sonny ducked as she threw a book at him. "So what did you need?" 

He cleared his throat, "I'm putting another guard on you and Michael." 

Carly looked at him, "And I don't suppose you'll tell me why?" 

Sonny shook his head. 

"Figures." She turned back to the books. 

"You won't try to lose them?" 

Carly sighed as he asked the question for the thousandth time, "No I will not ditch the guards." 

"Good." 

_This is going to end soon,_ he thought to himself as he walked out of the room. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"She has a lunch meeting at the Port Charles Grill, sir." 

"Yeah, and if I know Mrs. Corinthos, she'll be out shopping, again." 

Sorel nodded. Things were going better than expected. Not only did he have a meeting with Corinthos himself in just two days, but fate seemed to be handing him the perfect bargaining chips. 

"Alright gentlemen, here's what you'll do..." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Thank you so much for the lunch." Elizabeth hugged Monica and Lila, before packing up her daughter for the ride home. 

"You're more than welcome dear," Lila replied. "I've never seen Jason so happy." Elizabeth blushed at the compliment.  
  
Monica watched little Lila as she spoke, "I agree Elizabeth. You've breathed new life into this family." 

Elizabeth's blush deepened, "Well thank you, but the truth is, **I've** never been happier." She left Lila and Monica get in a few last kisses and hugs before strapping little Lila into her car seat. 

"I hope we can do this again," Lila said. 

Elizabeth smiled, she really loved these women, even if their husbands were a little harder to get along with. "You are more than welcome to stop by the penthouse any time," she offered. "I know Jason would love to see you." 

"We'll be sure to take you up on that," Monica replied, grateful to still be part of her son's life. 

Elizabeth talked with little Lila as she watched the two women leave. "Well now Little Miss, did you have fun?" She smiled as Lila replied by drooling on her new outfit. 

"Time to go home." Lila gurgled, as if she could understand her mother. Liz played along, "Yeah, home. To see Daddy." She started to pick up the seat and diaper bag, when she caught a whiff of Lila's diaper. "My, my, little Lila. We'd better go change that diaper! Wouldn't want Daddy to know what a messy little girl you are," she joked. 

Francis caught up with her in the lobby, "I just have to change Lila's diaper Francis, then we can go." 

Francis nodded as Louis rounded the corner. "Whenever you're ready Miss Webber." He watched her enter the ladies room. "Hey Louis-" he started to say to his partner, but was stopped with a silenced gun shot to the head. 

Louis waited a couple of paces before cracking open the ladies' room door, "Miss Webber! We have to go! Now!" 

Elizabeth's heart froze. Quickly putting on the diaper, she grabbed her daughter and the bag, leaving the car seat behind. 

"What's going-" her words stopping as she caught sight of Francis on the floor. "Oh my god," she whispered, clutching Lila tightly. She couldn't move, but Louis pushed her forward. 

"Let's go!" he yelled at her, breaking her out of her daze. As they ran outside, the driver pulled up with the limo. Liz jumped into the back, Louis stayed up front, checking to make sure nobody was after them. 

As they sped away, Liz took a moment to catch her breath, and her thoughts. She knew things like this could happen, but it still took her by surprise. _Francis!_ she remembered. _He was always so nice to me, and little Lila._ Lila started whimpering then, seemingly able to sense the danger around her. 

"Shhhh," Elizabeth whispered in her ear as she rocked her. After a couple of minutes, she glanced out the window. _This is not the way to the penthouse.   
  
_"Louis?" she called up to the front of the limo, but received no answer. "Louis!" She glanced around frantically, a million things going through her mind. Spotting the door handle, she tried it, but it wouldn't budge. The door was locked. 

Elizabeth sat, with her daughter in her lap, and prayed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_Across town:___

"Tony!" 

"Yes Mrs. Corinthos?" 

"What do you think?" Carly pointed to two cribs, trying to decide which one would be better. 

"Uh, Mrs. Corinthos. I don't know." She always asked him what he thought, and he dreaded it. But today would be different. 

She gave him a hard shove, "Why can't you guys ever give your opinions?!!" She brushed her way past him, "That's fine. Be that way, I'll just come back with Sonny." 

Tony gritted his teeth behind the smile plastered on his face, "What ever you say Mrs. Corinthos." 

"Jack! I'm ready to go home! Let's go!" She searched for the second guard, but didn't spot him anywhere. Before she could turn around to get Tony, she felt something hit her in the head. "Tony," she managed to whisper before slipping into a dark abyss. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
  
Sorel looked in on the three charges he had acquired, and smiled. 

"Perfect."   
  



	19. Business

"Damn it!" 

"I'm sorry Mr. Corinthos," Benny cringed, he hated having to tell Sonny this type of news. 

"Johnny!" 

Johnny opened the door, "Yes?" 

"Get Jason. Now." 

"Yes sir." He left the door open, closing it when Jason made his way into the apartment. 

"He's got them, doesn't he?" Jason asked, knowing the answer. 

Sonny nodded. 

Jason looked at the floor for a moment, then back up at Sonny, "Louis **and** Tony?" 

"This is all my fault," Sonny whispered in reply. "They have my wife, and your girlfriend and daughter, and it's all my FAULT," he emphasized as he shoved a vase off it's pedestal. 

"Now's not the time Sonny," Jason said simply 

"I KNOW!" he roared, not able to contain his fury. Walking over to the wet bar, he filled a glass full of brandy, downing it in one swallow. He repeated the process again, slamming the glass down on the table when he was done. 

"Alright," he sat down on the sofa. "Here's what's gonna happen..." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sorel greeted them with a sneer on his face, "So good to see you Mr. Corinthos." 

Sonny nodded, "Sorel. You have something that belongs to Mr. Morgan and myself." 

"Ah yes. The lovely Mrs. Corinthos. She sure has a mouth on her." He watched Sonny for the slightest sign of resignation, but was disappointed when all he found was contempt and pity. 

He turned to Jason, "And you girlfriend, my my. She certainly doesn't take no for an answer. But I must say, your daughter kept her in her place." His laugh was low and slimy. He enjoyed the relished in the flicker of pain that shone in Jason's eyes. 

"What do you want Sorel?" Sonny was becoming increasingly impatient. 

"What do I want? Mr. Corinthos, why are you in such a rush? Enjoy the beautiful night around you." Sorel intended to drag this out for as long as possible. 

"Mr. Corinthos?" Sonny turned at the sound of his name. Johnny nodded to him, signaling that everything was good to go. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_At the same time:_

"Shhhh," Elizabeth tried comforting her daughter, but it was no use. "We'll be home soon, I promise." Walking around the small room they were being kept in, she bounced her daughter up and down. "Daddy will find us, I know he will." 

She could see out the small window in the door, but there wasn't much to see. Just a table, sink, refrigerator, and microwave. She had no idea that Carly was on the other side of her wall. 

They weren't being treated badly, but it was driving Liz crazy being stuck in the same room. And Lila hated it, it was too cold and damp, and just not her room. Elizabeth laid down on the small bed she shared with her daughter. Pulling her close, she said a silent prayer. 

The next thing she knew, someone was kicking the door down in her room. Before she could realize what was going on, There were five men in her room, guns drawn. When they realized who she was, they holstered their weapons, and left the room. 

As she sat up, she heard Carly scream, and ran to see what was going on. 

"Carly!" she cried, running to her friend's side. "I didn't know they had you, too!" They hugged each other, understanding that this was a rescue attempt on Sonny and Jason's part. 

"Miss Webber, Mrs. Corinthos? If you're ready." One of Sonny's men ushered them out of the warehouse where they had been held. 

Elizabeth stopped, "Where are Tony and Louis? They were watching us." 

"They're being taken care of." 

Elizabeth shook her head, "I want to see them, now." 

The guards looked at each other, but decided to let her go. 

Liz handed Lila over to Carly, "I'll be right there." Carly watched as Liz went to face her betrayers. 

She saw them by the river, a huddle of men. Elizabeth pushed her way through, finally coming upon the man who had been hired to protect her. She slapped him across the face, "That's for betraying Jason." She slapped him again, "That's for betraying me." She looked at the guards and grabbed a gun, holding it to his chest right where his heart would be, "This is for betraying my daughter. Rot in hell." She pulled the trigger. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"So in exchange for the safe return of my wife, and Mr. Morgan's family, you want me to just give up my territory to you?" Sonny contemplated this for a moment. 

"That's right Mr. Corinthos. You just walk away, and never come back. You have my word that no harm will come to you, Mr. Morgan, and your families." 

Sonny nodded, "Ok." He reached out to shake Sorel's hand, sealing the deal. It was just the distraction Sonny needed. 

Before Sorel knew what happened, he'd been shot in the head. All of a sudden, men came pouring out of the area. Sorel's men gave up easily, but were shot as well. 

"I changed my mind," Sonny said, before shooting Sorel one more time. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"I don't think you should have done that Miss Webber," one of the guards commented as she watched the life slip out of Louis. 

She looked at the offending guard with raw fury in her eyes, "Well, you know what? I really don't give a damn what you think. This thing-" she pointed the gun at Louis, "took me, and my baby. I let him off pretty easy if you ask me." She shot him once more for safe keeping, "Anybody got something I can wipe this down with?" She grabbed a cloth, wiping the gun thoroughly, and handed it back to the owner. "Good night gentlemen." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Where are they?!?" Sonny bellowed. "They should've been here by now!" He paced the floor of the penthouse waiting for his wife and unborn child to return. He looked up at Johnny, "If anything went wrong tonight..." 

"They'll be here soon Mr. Corinthos. Apparently Miss Webber requested to talk to Louis." Johnny shifted uncomfortably, anxious to get back to his post in the hall. 

"Did she speak with him? They stopped her right?" Sonny didn't want Elizabeth involved with the 'accidents' the two moles were about to experience. 

"I think she did sir." 

Sonny sighed, "I'll deal with that later." He glanced at his watch for the twentieth time. "Where the he-" he started, but was interrupted when the door burst open. 

"Sonny!" Carly came running in, right to her husband's arms. 

Sonny held her close, tears forming in his brown eyes. _Thank you God_. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The waiting was driving Jason mad. He was usually a patient person, if he had to be, but this was torture. _What if Sorel was expecting us?_ he thought, only making himself feel worse. _I shouldn't have gone with Sonny, I should've been there to make sure Elizabeth, Lila, and Carly made it out safely._

Finally sitting down on the couch in front of the fire, he put his head in hands, forcing the tears into hiding. _I knew this would happen, this is why I wanted to stay away._

He was so distracted that he didn't hear Elizabeth slip into the penthouse with Lila asleep in her arms. 

"Jason." 

He turned towards the sound of his name, no longer able to keep himself from crying. He stood up, but before he could go to her, she had covered the distance. Wrapping his arms around them, they sunk to the floor, clinging to each other. 

"Elizabeth-" he started to say. 

"It's not your fault. Jason, you're not leaving me again." 

"It is my fault. And no, I'm not going to leave you." 

He stood up finally, gently lifting her up, and carried her upstairs. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Carly, I've been thinking." 

"About what babe?" she asked as she traced patterns on his bare chest. 

"I want to get remarried. In front of God. Just you and me." 

"Whatever you want honey." 

"Good." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Liz?" 

"Hmmm?" 

"Don't ever do that again." 

She rolled over to look at him, "Do what?" 

He pushed back a lock of hair hanging in her face, "I know you shot Louis. I can't have you doing things like that Elizabeth." 

She cut him off with a kiss, "He tried to hurt my child Jason, **our **child. Nobody messes with my family. Nobody." She closed her eyes as she snuggled closer to him. 

_Family_. The word bounced it's way around Jason's head. "Just don't do it again." 

She sighed, "I don't plan on getting kidnapped again, so I suppose I won't shoot anybody again." 

He cringed at the thought of her getting kidnapped again. "Good," he whispered, but she didn't hear him, for she had fallen asleep. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sneaking out of bed before Elizabeth could wake up, Jason slipped across the hall, hoping his friend was already awake. 

"Sonny?" he asked quietly as he peeked through the door. His reply was a heavenly smell coming from the kitchen. 

He stood in the door frame, watching Sonny make breakfast. "Sonny?" 

"Yeah." 

"I need a favor." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth woke to the sound of Lila crying. "Jason?" she called as she pulled on some clothes. Plucking Lila out of her crib, Liz made her way downstairs. "Jason?" she called again, getting increasingly anxious. She searched the kitchen and the balcony, no sign of him anywhere. "Jason!" she shouted, making her way over to the door. Just as she reached out for the door knob, the door swung open, and Jason walked in. 

"Jason Morgan!" 

His head jerked up, "Elizabeth! Oh, I'm sorry! I just went over to talk to Sonny for a few minutes." He led her to the couch in an attempt to calm her down. "I'm not leaving. I promised you Liz, you and Lila. I won't leave." He kissed Lila on the forehead as she began to suckle. "I do have some things that need to be taken care of. I have to go back to Sonny's island. Just for a few days." He watched her, gauging her reaction. 

"If you have to," she replied, not taking her eyes of their daughter. 

He took her chin in his hand to turn her face towards him, frowning as he saw the tears in her eyes. "Elizabeth, I will be back. I swear to you. I'm not leaving you." 

She smiled half heartedly, "It's just... I'm trying to believe you, but it's hard Jase. I know how much you want to protect me. And the past couple of days were difficult, I know. And I know you're thinking, 'if only.' Well Jase, I'm here, and Lila's here. And we love you, no matter what. There's no going back now." 

He leaned in, kissing her softly on the lips. "I don't want to go back," he whispered. 

"Good, because neither do I." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_A few days later:_

Jason looked around, making sure everything was in order. Finally, he called Sonny. 

"I'm ready." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Hey Sonny," Elizabeth held the door open for him. 

Sonny noticed the Chinese take out cartons strewn about the table and cringed, "You know Elizabeth, you're more than welcome to bring you and that beautiful girl of yours over any night of the week to join Carly and I for dinner." 

She laughed at his obvious dislike of her dinner menu. "Thanks Sonny, but I think you and Carly have needed this time alone." 

Sonny nodded, that was certainly true. 

Elizabeth looked at him warily, "So what can I do for you?" 

Sonny cleared his throat, knowing what she was thinking, but not wanting to ruin the effect of his request. "I need you and Lila down on the island for a little while." 

"What happened? Is Jason ok? He isn't hurt is he?" Her imagination started running away with her. 

Sonny shook his head as he sat her down on the couch. "No, no, no. Everything's fine. It's just that Jason suggested - and I agreed - that the three of you could use a little bit of down time. Get away from Port Charles, just the three of you." 

"And the guards," Elizabeth joked as she calmed down. 

Sonny nodded, "There's one other thing I need to talk to you about Elizabeth." He took a pause, thinking of the best way to say it. "Liz, I know you were upset with Louis, and I understand, I really do, but you can't do anything like that again. Do you understand?" 

Elizabeth nodded, hypnotized by the power that radiated from Sonny's eyes. "I'm sorry, I just, my emotions got the best of me." 

"I understand that, I honestly do. But I can't have you doing things like that on a regular basis." 

"I won't." 

He patted her hand, "Ok, so go back a few things. Jason said not to bring to much for yourself. I'll have Johnny drive you to the airport, where you'll meet up with your new guard." 

They both got up, Elizabeth escorting Sonny to the door. He hugged her, "Have a wonderful time." He smiled, and she saw knowledge flicker over his face. 

"Sonny? Is there something I should know?" 

He shook his head as he walked out, glad she couldn't see the huge grin on his face. 


	20. Pleasure

Elizabeth opened her eyes half way, gazing around the room where they had made love for the first time. 

"You know what Jase?" 

"Hmm?" 

"This is just what we needed." 

He rolled over to face her, "I know." He kissed her on the nose as she snuggled into the covers. "Did you check your art room?" 

She nodded. 

"Everything's ok right? I just wanted to have some things down here, so that we weren't dragging everything back and forth, whenever we come back here." 

Liz smiled at the idea of coming back, "Why do we even have to leave?" she teased. 

Jason thought for a moment, "I'm not quite sure." He laughed at himself. 

A wail sounded from the room across the hall. Jason untangled himself from the sheets and slipped on a pair of sweat pants. "Sounds like someone's hungry. Be right back." He ran his fingers over her toes as he walked by. 

Elizabeth sat up in the bed while Jason went to retrieve Lila. She smiled as he returned, loving the way he tended to Lila. 

He sat next to Elizabeth as she situated Lila, eager for her breakfast. "So, you're going to go out today, right? Shopping?" 

She nodded. 

"Good, then I get to spend some quality time with my little girl." He brushed the wisps of hair from Lila's forehead. 

"Is there anything in particular I should be looking for?" Elizabeth asked. 

He shook his head, not wanting to spoil the surprise. 

She looked at him skeptically, "You're sure?" 

He gave her a big smile, "I'm positive. Just go out and enjoy yourself. Lila and I will be fine. Ok?" He kissed her before she could protest. 

"If you say so." She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, catching the grin on his face. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason checked the details on last time, grinning like a kid on Christmas morning. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth went straight to the last store she had visited the last time she was here. Knowing Jason had planned something, she wanted to be prepared. Nothing seemed to jump out at her though. She was about to resign to defeat when she caught a glimpse of a dress that hadn't been displayed yet. "Excuse me..." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth returned to the villa, excitement seeping out from every pore in her body. She'd found a white rose on the bed when she returned from her shopping excursion, tied to it was a note: 

_Liz,_   
_I know you know I have something planned_   
_so meet me on the beach at 8. Don't worry_   
_about Lila, I've got someone watching her._   
_Be ready._

_Love,_   
_Jase_

Elizabeth chewed on her lower lip, smiling in anticipation. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason stood on the beach, staring out at the surf, thinking about how he got to this place in his life... 

_"You left everything just to take care of me?"_   
_"Of course I did. Jason, you were shot. I may have been able to turn my back on you after the fire, but not now. You needed me, so I came."_   
_"Yeah, but-"_   
_"No buts Jason. I'm here. That's that."_

He smiled, remembering the first time they kissed. He could even feel the heat from her lips... 

_"Jason, I broke up with Lucky. I broke up with him just before I received Sonny's call. We're different people than we once were. I didn't... I **don't** love him like I did. I love him, but I'm not **in** love with him. Does that make sense? No, maybe it doesn't. We've both changed since the night of his fire. I've grown up, moved on. I can't cling to what we had, because it's not there anymore. Jason?"_   
_"Elizabeth, what are you trying to tell me?"_   
_"I'm falling in love with you."_

His heart has stopped the first time she said those words to him... 

_"I'll bet he thinks I have something to do with you're breaking up with him, doesn't he?"_   
_"But you don't. I did this for me. I didn't plan on falling in love with you."_   
_"Well, Liz, it's been my experience that no one doesn't chooses to fall in love. It just happens."_   
_"I know. So, is there something you want to tell me?"_   
_"Well, I think I pretty much said it all with the kisses, don't you? What's wrong?"_   
_"I never thought it could be like this, I feel like I'm drowning, but I'm not scared. Does that make sense?"_   
_"Elizabeth, I can think of a thousand reasons why I should put you on the next plane back to Port Charles and never look back, and only one reason for you to stay, but so help me, I want you to stay."_   
_"There's no place else I want to be."_

He smiled as he remembered those words. There hadn't been any place he wanted to be either. Then or now... 

_"Elizabeth, there's something I want to give you. A heart, for the woman who stole mine."_   
_"Jason, I don't - wait, yes I do. Come on."_   
_"Elizabeth, Do I really look like this?"_   
_"I finished this the other day, when you wanted me to paint you, and you fell asleep. You looked so enchanted, I couldn't help but wonder what you were dreaming about."_   
_You. You're all I dream about. All I **want** to dream of. Don't you know that by now?"_

The painting of him sleeping hung in their room at the penthouse as a reminder of that night, the first time they made love... 

_"Are you?"_   
_"Am I what?"_   
_"Are you happy?"_   
_"Elizabeth, I am happier than I thought I could be. Truth is, I was never really happy until I met you. I thought I was happy with Robin, and Lord knows Carly isn't a person, she's an event. And they both loved me, but neither of them were good for me. Robin because she kept trying to change me, getting me out of Sonny's business. I didn't know how to function outside Sonny's world. But I did it to make Robin happy. And Carly, well, the best thing she did for me was to give me Michael. And for a year that was enough, but she took him away from me in the end. Elizabeth, you accept me, Jason Morgan, Sonny Corinthos' right hand man, and all around tough guy. You're there for me, to listen, to say nothing, to change nothing. You won't take what I can't give. And I promise you Liz, there's nothing I wouldn't give you. You let me be me, and that's more than I could've dreamed for. Please don't cry. I love you Elizabeth Webber, and that will never change."_   
_"I love you back Jason Morgan."_

And the miracle was that she still loved him. After everything she still loved him. The tears fell as he relived the pain he caused her... 

_"Damn it Sonny! This is the third time! And Elizabeth has no idea what's going on!"_   
_"She hasn't needed to know Jason."_   
_"That doesn't matter! **I** know! That's enough! Sonny, that's it. I can't do this to her. She's been hurt so much. And, she trusts me. God help her, she has total faith in me."_   
_"And you haven't let her down."_   
_"Yes, I did. I let her down by letting her love me."_   
_"Jason, you didn't **let** her do anything. She was going to love you whether you liked it or not."_   
_"I let her in, Sonny. I let her into my life knowing full well what would happen!"_   
_"Jason, you are a human being, whether you like it or not. You cannot be Superman, on call 24 hours a day. There is only so much you can control. Elizabeth understands that. Damn it man, that's why you lover her so much!"_   
_"I have to leave."_   
_"Yeah, go see her. You'll feel better."_   
_"No Sonny, I mean leave town. Leave Elizabeth. She won't be safe unless I do."_   
_"No man, she won't be safe if you leave. She'll be miserable, but she won't be safe."_   
_"She'll be **safer**, and that's what matters. I've made up my mind. I'll leave tomorrow. Make the arrangements."_

_"Sonny?"_   
_"Yeah?"_   
_"She's going to need you. I know how Carly feels, but please..."_   
_"You never have to ask."_   
_"And let her stay in the penthouse. As little, or as long as she wants."_   
_"You know she won't leave. She'll wait for you Jason."_   
_"I know."_

_"Jason? Jason, please don't hang up. Please, there's something..."_   
_"Listen man. You need to get back, like now. She needs you. Now."_

_"Elizabeth you're-"_   
_"Pregnant."_   
_"Elizabeth.."_   
_"Are you staying?"_   
_"Of course."_   
_"Ok, then."._

_"Don't you ever do that again, Jason Morgan. Promise me."_   
_"I promise."_   
_"I'm sorry Elizabeth."_

Pride for his daughter made his heart swell... 

_"Push Elizabeth!! This is the last one!"_   
_"Jason, I can't, I can't do this!"_   
_"Elizabeth, you are the strongest woman I know. You brought me back to you, didn't you? And you can do this. Do you know how I know? Because I love you, and you love me. And because we want to love our baby. Push for me babe, push."_   
_"Come... ON!"_   
_"Liz, look."_   
_"It's a girl!"_   
_"A girl, we have a daughter."_   
_"Yes we do."_

_"What should we name her?"_   
_"Lila Nicole."_

_"She looks like you."_   
_"If you say so."_   
_"She's got your beautiful blue eyes."_   
_"That they are."_

_"Jason.."_   
_"Elizabeth, there's something you need to know first. There were three attempts on your life, before I left. I never told you because I didn't want to scare you. I thought leaving would make it better for you."_   
_"Well you were wrong, Jason. You were the only thought in my head during those seven months."_   
_"But you were safe."_   
_"I'm safer when I'm with YOU. I don't want to be anywhere else but right her, in your arms, ever. This is the safest place for me. If you take that away from me, what have I got?"_   
_"A longer life span."_   
_"I don't care! I could die tomorrow from a heart attack!! As long as you're here to love me, I wouldn't care!"_   
_"But I would."_   
_"Jason, whatever happens happens. You can't control every single thing! And you sure as hell can't control my life! That's what Lucky tried to do when he told me to stop talking to you. WHY on EARTH would I want that again?!"_   
_"Elizabeth, I wasn't trying to control your life-"_   
_"Yes you were!! You didn't give me a chance to choose! The man I love, or a safe and loveless life. DUH! Jason, I would choose you. I chose you then, and I choose you now! I could have a hundred threats on my life, I don't care, as long as I'm with you. I know, I know. You can't keep me safe one hundred percent of the time. I understand that Jason, I really do. But you know what? It's worth it! It's worth the danger, as long as I can wake up in your arms, and look into those beautiful blue eyes. If someone held a gun to my head and told me the only way I could stay alive was if you were gone, I'd pull the trigger myself."_   
_"Elizabeth-"_   
_"I know Jason. I remember what you said that night on the beach. There's a thousand reasons for you to leave and never look back. But now you don't have just one reason to stay, you have two. Jason Morgan, if you leave, I will follow you. I'll take Lila with me, and we'll find you. You seem to forget Jason, I have your heart. I won't ask for more than you can give. And there's nothing you can't give me."_   
_"Except for a normal life."_   
_"Normal is a relative term."_

_"So we're agreed? No leaving in the middle of the night? And if I'm in danger, the only one to protect me is you. Ok?"_   
_"I don't agree with it, but do I really have a choice?"_   
_"Jason Morgan-"_   
_"I love you Elizabeth."_   
_"I love you back."_

And she had loved him. As much as he loved her. His eyes clouded over when he thought about the day he almost lost her...   


_"Sorel's moving men in. Quietly. Really quietly. Benny almost didn't catch it."_   
_"How many?"_   
_"Too many."_   
_"Get another guard on Elizabeth and Lila. If anything happens to them, I'll never forgive myself, Sonny."_

But something had happened. He choked back the fury that raged inside of him... 

_"He's got them, doesn't he?"_   
_"Yes."_

_"Jason."_   
_"Elizabeth-"_   
_"It's not your fault. Jason, you're not leaving me again."_   
_"It is my fault. But no, I'm not going to leave you."_

And he hadn't. It had crossed his mind, but he promised her, Lila too. And now he was here, waiting for his life to begin... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth peeked in on Lila, just to make sure everything was ok. She smiled at her sleeping daughter. _At least she's young enough so that she won't remember what happened to her._

Look out on the beach from their room, ELizabeth took a deep breath, and walked out onto the beach... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

He turned back to the villa, feeling her eyes on him. His breath caught in his lungs as he watched her. The dress she bought was stunning. A simple white slip dress, with a rose design embroidered on the bodice, petals falling down the side, to land at the hem. Her hair was loose, with a white rosebud tucked behind her ear, and her feet were bare. He smiled as he noticed the necklace and pendant he had given her around her neck. She couldn't have looked exquisite if she tried. 

She stopped about a foot away from him, to take in the beauty of the evening. The sun was just beginning to set behind him. She looked Jason up and down. His hair had been lightened naturally by the sun, and his skin was a nice golden color, just tan enough. He looked so relaxed in his white shirt with the top two buttons undone and khaki's, rolled up to just above the ankle. She remembered their first night on the beach and smiled. 

"You look..." he searched for a word as she did a slow turn, presenting him with a full view of the dress. "Breath taking." 

She moved closer to him, kissing him. "You don't look so bad yourself." She grinned. 

He took her hand in his as they walked along the beach, the water lapping at their feet. She spotted the small bonfire up ahead of them. 

Reaching the blanket he set out for them, he sat down, pulling her with him. They sat like that, Liz leaning against him, his arms around her, as the sun set. 

"Are you hungry?" he murmured into her ear. 

She nodded. 

Reaching for the picnic basket, he set out it's contents. He looked up at her, her face even more beautiful in the moonlight. "Don't worry, I didn't cook any of this," he joked. She smiled, but didn't respond. 

He opened the first container, "Chef salad with vinaigrette dressing for two." Opening another container, "Shrimp with cocktail sauce. And the main entree, crab legs with melted butter." 

They ate in relative silence, just enjoying each other's company. When they had finished packing the empty containers into the basket, she sat with him again. Staring out at the dark waters, she thought about the first time they had been in that spot. 

Jason watched her, everything about her was perfect. Perfect to him anyway. He cleared his throat, subtly trying to get her attention. She turned to him and smiled. Resting her head on his chest, she inhaled deeply, taking in his scent mixed with the salty air. 

Running his hand through his hair, he spoke. 

"Elizabeth?" 

"Hmm?" 

"Are you happy? Here? With me?" 

She wrapped her arms around him. "Of course I am." 

He nodded, licking his lips nervously, he continued. 

"You know how happy you make me, don't you?" He felt her nod, and the emotions just started pouring out. "Elizabeth, I've never been so happy. That day you found me in the snow? That day changed my life forever, Liz. This may sound funny, but I'm glad I got shot. If I hadn't, I might never have met you." He paused as he felt her tears soak through his shirt, dampening his chest. Lifting her face to his, he kissed her, running his tongue over her lips to taste the salt of her tears. Kissing her eyelids, anywhere the tears had fallen he kissed her. "Please don't cry," he whispered between kisses. "Please." 

He continued once he was certain the tears had stopped. "Elizabeth, I didn't know it then, but my life began the night you took me to your studio. I knew I should stop it, I _tried_ to stop it, but it happened anyway. I should've left and never come back." He looked into her eyes, "But I couldn't. I kept getting drawn back here, no matter how hard I tried to fight it. It was you Elizabeth. I was drawn to you. I didn't want to love you, didn't want _you_ to love _me_." He chuckled, "but look how that turned out." He slipped his arm from around her so he could reach into his pocket. He watched her, hoping she wouldn't notice. 

"Elizabeth, I never thought I would find someone to share my life with. I never thought I _could_ share my life. But here I am, letting you in, and even if I could stop it, I don't want to. Granted there are things you can't and won't know about, but that's the price I pay for being who I am. The thing is, you understand that, and don't fault me for it. You gave me love Elizabeth. Plain and simple. I never knew what I was missing in my life, but I know now. I couldn't live without this feeling. Wouldn't even try, now that I know what it feels like." He laughed, running his free hand over his face, "Am I making any sense whatsoever?" 

Elizabeth nodded, "Perfect sense." 

He kissed her on the forehead as he slipped his arms back around her. "Close your eyes," he whispered to her. Satisfied they were closed, he opened the box, and set it in her hand. 

"Elizabeth? Would you be my wife?" 

She opened her eyes slowly, wanting the moment to last forever. "Oh Jason," she gasped, her eyes fixated on the box in her hand. 

He took the ring from the box and slipped it onto her finger, "Marry me Elizabeth." 


	21. Forever

Liz studied the ring on her finger. 

"I got a heart shaped diamond to match your pendant." He watched her, unable to breathe. The thought of her saying no has not crossed his mind until now. 

"It's beautiful," she said breathlessly. 

Finally able to tear her eyes away from the ring, she looked up at him, expecting him to say 'just kidding!' 

"I'm serious Elizabeth. My life makes no sense, unless you're by my side. Please say yes." 

"Oh Jason, of course 'yes!' She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. She giggled at the thought of marriage, of spending the rest of her life with Jason. "Yes," she whispered into his ear. 

He smiled as he kissed her, and made a promise to himself. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They stayed at the island a couple more days, content to be with each other, not ready to share the engagement with anyone yet. 

When they touched down at the airport, Liz slipped the ring from her finger, keeping it under wraps until they could have a small party and tell everyone at once. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

They both wanted a simple ceremony. Preferably on the beach, where Elizabeth had first confessed her feelings. It was a special memory for them, and they wanted to share it. 

Chloe offered to design the dress for Elizabeth, not taking no for an answer. Elizabeth reciprocated the favor by asking Chloe to be her maid of honor. Emily would have been her first choice, but sadly, her and Zander had not kept in touch, so no one knew where they were. 

Jason, of course, asked Sonny to be his best man. Carly would be there of course, but that was it. The five of them, and the minister. That was all Elizabeth and Jason needed, or wanted. 

There was one request that Elizabeth made of Jason, but there was no way he would say no to her, so he agreed to write his own vows, and she would write hers. 

"What am I getting myself into?" he jokingly asked himself aloud. 

"Me," Liz had replied. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Everybody flew down to the island together. It would be a mini vacation for them all. Chloe needed it after trying valiantly to reunite Alexis and Ned. Carly and Sonny, on the other hand, were leaving the day after the wedding for Martinique to renew their own wedding vows. 

As for Liz's and Jason's honeymoon, she had no idea where they were going. Jason had asked to plan the whole thing, to surprise her, and she agreed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Jason rolled over in the bed, reaching for Elizabeth. His eyes flew open when he couldn't feel her. "Elizabeth!" he called, jumping out of bed. He spotted her sketch pad propped up against the window. Picking it up, he barely glanced at the sketch, anxious only to read the note: 

_Jase,_

_I know you don't believe in superstitions,_   
_but it's bad luck for us to see each other_   
_on our wedding day, so Chloe, Carly, and I_   
_have set up shop elsewhere. I'll see you soon_

_love always,_   
_Liz_

Taking a moment to let his heart beat return to normal, his attention was drawn back to the sketch. It was his left hand, outstretched, reaching for something. But he noticed a ring on the fourth finger. He glanced at his hand, and realized she had added his wedding band into the drawing. He smiled, knowing the next hours would drag on forever. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

She had wanted to give him something to satiate him until that evening. 

"Elizabeth?" Chloe asked, noticing her friend's glazed look. 

"Hmm?" Elizabeth turned to Chloe, "I'm sorry, did you say something?" She smiled sheepishly. 

"Thinking about him, huh?" 

"Chloe it's a dream come true." 

"What's a dream come true?" Carly asked as she made her way to the breakfast table. 

"Marrying Jason." 

Carly nodded, feeling the same way about Sonny. "We may not have gotten along in the beginning Liz, but even I can see how happy you make him. And that's all I've ever really wanted for him." 

"I know." 

"Ok, good. So what are we going to do with the last few hours of your single life?" 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Sonny, I owe this all to you." 

"How's that?" 

"Well, if you hadn't asked Elizabeth to come to the island when I was hurt, this might not be happening." 

Sonny shrugged, "It may have taken a little longer, but it would've happened." 

"Yeah," he said softly. "She makes me happy, you know?"   


"Yeah, I know." He thought about Carly, pregnant with his baby. "You make her happy, too." 

"I hope so." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

There was a knock on the door. 

"I'll get it!" Chloe jumped up, "just in case it's Jason." 

She opened the door, "Jason! You have to go. I'm sorry but that's the way it is." 

He laughed at her, knowing he was breaking a rule, but there was something he had to do. 

"I just need to talk to Elizabeth for a minute. I promise I won't look at her, she can keep the door between us, ok?" 

Chloe thought about it for a moment, finally relenting, "Ok, but just a couple of minutes. Carly and I will be right back," she said, dragging a protesting Carly out the door with her. 

Elizabeth went to the door, carefully making sure Jason didn't see her. 

"Elizabeth?" 

She leaned against the door, "Yes?" 

He smiled, picturing her in his mind, "I know there's a whole 'something borrowed, something blue, something new' thing that you're supposed to follow, so I got you the 'something new.'" 

She watched his hand slip through the crack in the door. Taking the jewelry box from his hand, she opened it. "Oh Jason! They're beautiful!" 

"I wanted earrings to match your necklace," he said simply. 

She took a moment to put them in, "Close your eyes." 

As he closed them, he felt the door open slightly as she leaned out to kiss him. 

He laughed at her, "You're breaking the rule," he teased. 

"The rule is the groom can't see the bride. There's nothing that says the bride can't see the groom." 

He groaned at her, "And how is that fair?" 

She smiled, missing him as much as he was missing her, "It's not. But I'm not complaining." 

"Just one more-" 

Chloe interrupted him, "Ok! Time's up!" 

Jason shook his head as he made his way to the beach to wait for the ceremony to begin. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Elizabeth looked herself over in the mirror. The dress Chloe designed was perfect, simple but perfect. The whole thing was white, with pearl embroidering on the bodice. The skirt flared out slightly, stopping just above her ankles. Becuase the dress was strapless, it only served to highlight the necklace Jason had given her. Carly and Chloe stopped at a local floral shop, picking out tiny white and yellow rose buds to stick in Elizabeth's hair. They had all decided that shoes would be unnecessary for the beach. 

Elizabeth took a deep breath "This is it," she whispered. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

The minister looked up just as Carly made her way across the beach. 

"We're ready," she stated, taking her place. 

Jason watched as Chloe emerged from the villa, Elizabeth a pace behind her. He smiled at her as he took her hand. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Ladies and gentlemen," the priest began, "We are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony. If anyone has just cause to why these too should not be married, speak now, or forever hold their peace." The priest knew this was a moot point, but said it anyway. 

"Very well. At this time, I would normally give the vows, but Elizabeth and Jason have choose to say their own. Elizabeth?" 

She turned to Jason, taking both his hands in hers. "Jason, I know our friendship took everyone by surprise, me most of all. You helped me without even trying, and that means more to me than you'll ever know. Even when you were gone, you were still in my heart, only I didn't know it, didn't realize it until it was almost too late. We have proven that we can beat the unbeatable, and grow stronger because of it. Jason, I want you in my life, now and forever." She smiled at him, wiping away the tears on her cheeks. 

"Jason?" the priest turned to him. 

Jason sighed, "Elizabeth, I can't say that I didn't know how to love before I met you, because I did. I just never loved someone so completely. I couldn't because there was something someone always expected from me. You're not like that. The only thing you expect of me is to be there when you wake up in the morning, and at night when you go to bed. You know all of my faults, and love me all the more for them. I know our time together has been slightly less than perfect," he chuckled, "actually, way less than perfect, but you're still here, and for that I will always be grateful. I want you in my life, always, to laugh with me, cry with me, grow old with me. I love you now, I'll love you forever." He brought his hand up to her face to wipe away the second round of tears. 

The priest continued, "May I have the rings?" Holding his hand out, Sonny and Chloe give him the rings. He hands Jason the first ring, "Repeat after me. I give this ring as a sign of my love and commitment in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." 

Taking Liz's hand, he slips the ring on her finger, "I give this ring as a sign of my love and commitment in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." 

Holding out his hand to Elizabeth, "Repeat after me. I give this ring as a sign of my love and commitment in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." 

Taking the ring, she slowly puts it on Jason's finger as she speaks, "I give this ring as a sign of my love and commitment in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." 

Holding up his hand above the couple, the priest continues, "What God has joined together in faith, let no man put asunder. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I now pronounce you man and wife." He smiled as he watched Liz and Jason jump ahead of him and kiss. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

_At a hotel somewhere in Italy..._

"Jase?" 

"Hmm?" 

"Where do we go from here?" 

Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her shoulder, "As long as I'm with you, I don't care." 

She kissed his arm, "Yeah, me too," she whispered. 


End file.
